Checkmate
by nick2951
Summary: When Djibril is assassinated at Heavens Base, a new faction takes control of the Alliance. What are their motives and how are their members connected to Kira and Athrun's past. KxLxF, AxCxLxM, YxS, OCxOC, SxS, MeerxOC, possible DxM
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed, Gundam Seed Destiny, or any other material from other Anime and Games.

President Copland paced the room for the seventh time.

Ever since the shuttle took off, he could not sit still. He was too nervous about the possible consequences of his upcoming actions.

When he first became President, everything seemed so simple. The Assembly was full of weak fools and Djibril guaranteed him absolute power. When the second war started, everything was going well and there was no need for him to worry.

After the disaster at Berlin, everything began to change. LOGOS's denouncement by Gilbert Durandal turned the people against the Alliance and the loss of more territory to ZAFT. Djibril was now holed up at Heavens Base and Copland's support in the Assembly was now smaller than ever. There were even calls for his removal from office.

The Alliance was falling apart. The Republic of East Asia had withdrawn its own forces and the Eurasian Federation was threatening to do the same. The South African Union was still loyal but its support was no way near the other members. The only good thing was that Victoria was still in their hands and too well defended for ZAFT to attack at the moment.

Copland knew his back was against the wall and when HE came forward with hiss offer, the Atlantic Federation President knew that he could not refuse it. However, he was still nervous.

"Will you take a seat Copland, you are starting to annoy me" said the man in the chair some feet away from where Copeland was pacing. Copeland nodded and sat across from the man.

"I am sorry, but what we are about to do….." said the man with a worried tone in his voice.

"Is to assure the continued existence of the Alliance" stated the young man. Though he was only eighteen, he was one of the most powerful individuals in the Earth Alliance outside Djibril.

"The risk though…." said Copland before he was cut off.

"Will be worth it; do not worry my friend, everything will be all right" said Nichos Ayanami. Behind him stood a pair of Chinese female twins, both in their mid-twenties. One was dressed in a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt while the other was in a long white silk Chinese dress. They both looked almost exactly alike with the only difference was that the one in the dress had a mole on her right cheek. Other than that, they both had long brown hair and green eyes.

When Copland first encountered the twins, he was enthralled by their beauty. That changed when he saw them in action. From what he could gather, the twins were skillful assassins whose loyalty to their master was non-questionable.

"If we are going to do this, then we should have brought an army" said the Federation leader in an disgruntled tone.

"There is no need for one as you will see. Just sit down and relax" said Nichos with a smile.

Copland just grunted and excused himself to use the restroom. He felt like he was going to be sick.

"He is aggravating" said Yu Lan in an annoyed tone. Her hand was clenched beside her white dress.

"Yes he is, but that is understandable given his personality. I can see how Djibril was able to exert his authority over him for so long" replied Nichos, amused by the statement.

"Do you want me to kill him?" asked Yu Fan in an even tone.

"No, not yet; he is useful at the moment. When someone more competent appears in the Assembly, then we will get rid of him" answered Nichos.

"Understood" said Yu Fan.

From the front of the shuttled, a soldier appeared and made his way to the trio. Dressed in an Atlantic Federation uniform, he saluted briefly before speaking.

"We are about twenties minutes away from Heavens Base Director Ayanami. As per your instructions, we have stated that we are carrying President Copland aboard. Lord Djibril will be meeting us on the tarmac" informed the man.

"Thank you Captain; inform the Scinfaxi that we will contact them when we are ready to receive their troops" said the Director. The Captain saluted and headed back to the cockpit.

"Yu Lan, when Djibril is dealt with, I want you to eliminate the other LOGOS members. Leave no survivors" said Nichos in a serious tone. Yu Lan nodded.

Copland appeared and retook his seat across from Director Ayanami. The man was pale and sweat appeared on his brow.

Nichos just smile.

…………………………………………………………………………………….

To say that Djibril was irritated was an understatement.

For the last week, life had been Hell for him. With the threat of an impending ZAFT attack, his nerves were shot.

Though he had every confidence that Heavens Base's defenses could repel any attack, there was always the possibility that Durandal could outwit him again. There was also the fact that ZAFT had three Gundams in their possession and he was down to one Extended.

His only ace in the hole was the four Destroy Gundams that Heavens Base had in its possession. However, while a Destroy was more than a match for any other mobile suit, Djibril had doubts about their capabilities against a Gundam. Freedom had proven that.

As he watched the shuttle approach, his anger turned to Copland. He had no idea why he was here and did not care. Copland was to play his part and follow orders.

The shuttle landed, and the side door opened up and a pair of Atlantic Federation troops took their place along side the entrance. President Copland then appeared, sporting a nervous smile as he approached Djibril.

"Why are you here?" asked the LOGOS leader angrily. The response he got was something he was not expecting.

"Lord Djibril, by the authority as the President of the North Atlantic Federation I am here by taking control of this base and placing you under arrest" said Copland as steadily as he possibly could. Djibril stood there in silence as did the Commander of the base behind him. After a minute of his face going through several expressions, the LOGOS leader suddenly laughed.

"If you are trying to be funny Copland, you succeeded; now you idiot, I will ask again. Why are you here?" inquired Djibril amusingly.

"So you are resisting?" asked the Federation leader in return, not trying to let the man in front of him intimidate him. Djibril's face went from amusement to anger. He stepped forward to teach Copland a lesson on who was really in charge.

Then, there was a loud bang and a part of Djibril's head exploded. The blood went everywhere with some of it spraying on Copland and the Heavens Base Commander. The body then fell backwards onto the ground and a pool of blood was seen emanating from the hole in Djibril's head.

President Copland turned and saw Director Ayanami standing at the shuttle's entrance with his pistol drawn. There was smoke coming out of the muzzle and Nichos wore a small smile.

"What the hell did you just do?!" screamed the Federation leader. His face was one of horror and shock.

"He refused to comply" answered Director Ayanami with a shrug. He then put his pistol away.

"You never said that you were going to kill him!" screamed the man.

"Calm down Copland, this was the only way. We both know that there was no way Djibril was going to surrender without a fight. It had to come to this" said the Director, walking forward. He then handed Copland a handkerchief to wipe the blood off.

The Base Commander still stood there in shock, not knowing what to do. He was tempted to call security but was reluctant to do so. Though Heavens Base was maintained by LOGOS, it was still a North Atlantic Federation military base and President Copland was the highest authority at the moment. Besides, he never did like Djibril anyways; him and his other Blue Cosmos fanatics. Luckily for him, they were all at Daedalus on the moon.

"What are your orders Mr. President?" asked the Base Commander, General John Noland, and saluting Copland.

"This is Director Nichos Ayanami; he is the newly appointed Supreme Commander of all loyalist Earth Alliance Forces" informed Copland, trying wipe the last of the blood off his skin.

"Welcome to Heavens Base, Sir" greeted the General.

"Thank you General; where are the other LOGOS members?" asked the Director with a smile.

"In the conference room; we were in the middle of a meeting when you arrived" answered Noland.

"Thank you; inform security that my bodyguard is not to be interfered with" ordered the young man. Nichos nodded at Yu Lan who then headed towards the base's interior.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Where is Djibril? He should have been back by now" asked a LOGOS member. They were halfway through the meeting when Lord Djibril had been called away.

"This is highly irregular; what was so important that he had to leave?" asked another member, rubbing his bald head.

"Could it be that we are under attack?" asked blond member, panic in his voice.

"If we were under attack, we would know" replied bearded member in a snide tone.

The LOGOS members all looked at one another and continued to speculate on the whereabouts of Djibril. They were the only ones in the conference room. The door then opened and all the members turned to see who it was.

Some of the members grinned as they watched Yu Lan enter the room and closed the door behind her. It had been a while since they had seen a woman as young as she and they gave her a lecherous grin. Her hands were behind her back and her face was blank.

"Looks like Djibril sent us some entertainment" said the bald headed LOGOS member with a smile. The other members leaned back in their chairs and prepared to enjoy themselves.

Pulling the sub-machine gun from the back of her, Yu Lan pointed the weapon at the LOGOS members and fired before they had a chance to react. Bullets riddled their bodies and blood splattered everywhere. After ten seconds of firing, Yu Lan stopped and lowered her weapon. Smoke came out of the muzzle and she surveyed the carnage.

"This is Yu Lan; objective achieved" said the woman, talking into her ear piece.

"Excellent; return at once" said Nichos on the other end.

"Yes Sir" said the woman, turning back to the door. Taking one last glance at the bodies, Yu Lan glared and then left the room.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

"Now that that's taken care of; General Noland could you please take us to the Command Center? There is a call I need to make" said Director Ayanami with a smile.

"Certainly Sir; right this way" replied the General, motioning Nichos and Copland to follow him. As the trio walked on, Copland leaned to the side.

"What call are we going to make?" asked the Federation leader with curiosity.

"The call to Premier Romanov; if we are to rebuild the Alliance, he is the first man we need to contact" answered Director Ayanami.

"I have been trying to contact the Eurasians for a week now; what makes you think that they will talk to you?" asked Copland.

"I have good relations with the man as well as other elements within the Eurasian Federation's Government. They will talk to me" replied Nichos with confidence. The two continued on in silence.

Walking down the halls on the base, both President Copland and Director Ayanami noted the number of personnel scurrying about. Most of them seemed nervous. Seeing their looks, the General explained.

"We are expecting an attack from ZAFT. According to latest intelligence, more forces are gathering at Gibraltar as well as rogue elements of our own forces who have sided with ZAFT" said the man.

"Ah, yes that makes sense. Do not worry, I do not believe that ZAFT will be attacking anytime soon" said Nichos.

"Why not?" asked the puzzled Noland. President Copland was curious as well.

"ZAFT's sole reason to attack this base is to capture or kill Djibril and the other LOGOS members. With them now dead, there is no reason for ZAFT to attack" explained the Director.

"So we are safe here?" asked a nervous Copland.

"For the moment; once Gilbert discovers that he has a new opponent to play chess with, I have no doubt that he will launch an attack on this base. However, I plan to have a much better defense up by then" replied Nichos with a smirk.

They entered the Command Center after passing a duo of guards who saluted them as they entered. The room was quite large and rectangular. There were monitors everywhere including one that practically took up one of the walls. One the other side was a set of chairs with one in the center resembling a throne. The screens showed various things from numbers of troops stationed at the base and their positions to mobile suit counts. On the large screen was a detailed map of Heavens Base and the surrounding area.

"Contact Moscow; inform them that it is Director Ayanami" ordered Nichos, taking a seat on Djibril's throne. The communications officer complied and made the transmission.

"Hmm, this is quite comfortable" said Nichos as he settled in the chair. A second later, the communications officer waved at him and a group of men and women appeared on screen.

"Ah, Premier Romanov; it is nice to see you again" greeted Director Ayanami with a friendly smile.

"It is my friend; I see that you have been successful" observed Premier Romanov of the Eurasian Federation. He was a bulky man in his late fifties with grey hair and hazel eyes. The man was currently wearing a white dress uniform which was the usual attire for his office. The deep accent made it obvious of his Russian heritage.

"Yes; I am happy to say that LOGOS had been taken care of; have you received the data that I sent you?" asked the young man.

"Yes I have; its information is frightening" said Romanov in a grave tone.

"Yes it is" agreed Nichos with a frown on his face.

"Though you have always been a friend, I have to question the validity of this information" said the Eurasian leader.

"I can understand that; rest assured that this information is accurate and comes to you courtesy of the South African Union, not the North Atlantic Federation" informed Nichos.

"I did not know that the South Africans had that type of intelligence network" said Copland with surprise in his voice. Romanov nodded as well.

"With my long association with our South African allies, we have built up a very excellent Intelligence service with deep roots within the PLANT Government. It was through their efforts that we were able to discover Gilbert Durandal's Destiny Plan and its motives" stated Director Ayanami.

"I see; this may convince some within my Government but there are still some elements who openly support Durandal and his efforts. It will be hard for me to openly support you in rebuilding the Alliance" said Romanov with a frown.

"That is true; however, those elements that support Gil are all from nations that are calling for independence from the Federation. I am sorry to say that the Eurasian Federation is falling apart. With your pledge and support, I could remedy that through my resources" said Nichos with a smile.

"Hmm….that could convince some within my Government. What do you need me to do?" asked the man.

"Just recognize my authority as Supreme Commander of all Earth Alliance forces and that should be enough. Heavens Base will now be the headquarters of all loyal Earth military forces. I will convene a military council in three days, just send you're Generals" replied Director Ayanami. Romanov nodded.

"What about the Republic of East Asia?" asked Copland.

""It seems that they have decided to sit on the sidelines for the moment; though many of their ships have been seen in Gibraltar. In time they will come back to us" stated the young man in assurance.

"And ZAFT?" asked Romanov in a curious tone.

"Gilbert Durandal's sole reason for fighting this war is to "liberate" us from the clutches of LOGOS. With them now gone, he will have to come up with another reason to justify continuing fighting with our forces. If he just keeps fighting, he will lose the support of the people which he cannot let happen" answered Nichos.

"Do you think he will sue for peace?" asked Copland.

"No; the man is dead set on initiating this plan of his. In time he will come up with another reason to justify fighting. However, it might take him some time and that will give us an opportunity to rebuild and prepare. When ZAFT finally attacks us, I plan to have a few surprises for them" said Nichos with a smile.

"Like the Scinfaxi and the Hrimfaxi?" asked Romanov with a grin.

"As well as some other tools" replied the young man.

"Well, I am looking forward to seeing what you can do. My Generals will arrive soon; until then my friend" said the Eurasian leader.

"Until then; say hello to your wife for me" said Nichos. The man on the screen nodded and it went blank.

"What are the Scinfaxi and the Hrimfaxi?" asked the Atlantic Federation leader. They were names he had never heard before.

"A joint project I have with the Eurasians. You will see in time" answered the Director. Copland nodded and excused himself to go rest. Noland offered to escort him to the guest quarters and the two left Nichos to his thoughts.

Nichos leaded back on the chair and closed his eyes. He knew that he had to take his injection in three hours and was dreading it.

He now knew that the easy part was now over with no complications what so ever. Now came his complex game of chess with Gilbert Durandal; a game that he was actually looking forward to. Nichos was looking forward to it. He had his own endgame to achieve.

He was also looking forward to meeting some old friends. It had been years since he last saw Kira Yamato and Athrun Zala.

Would they be ever surprised.

Please R&R


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed, GS Destiny, or any other elements from other Anime and games.

Author's Note: The pairings in this fic have been picked but it will be a while before anything will be rock solid. In other words: Still up in the Air. I can say that A/C and K/L fans should not be too disappointed. Also expect a Meer/OC pairing.

Thank you Noshmono for the pre-read

_Gibraltar_

Athrun Zala glared out the window as the Minerva made her way into Gibraltar.

It had been a week since the battle with the Archangel and the Freedom. Since then, the young man had not been able to get a wink of sleep. The nightmares would not stop.

Athrun was currently in his cabin. He ventured out very little since the battle, the exception being to eat or work on his Gouf. He said the occasional hello to Lunamaria and Meyrin, but did his best to ignore both Shinn and Rey.

Shinn still had that arrogant smirk on his face and Athrun really wanted to hit him again. He knew that Shinn was a good pilot and deserved the title as ace. However, Athrun knew that if Kira had not been so distracted by defending the Archangel, Freedom would have squashed Destiny.

Athrun watched as Gibraltar came into view. He raised an eyebrow as he noted the increased military presence in the base. He also saw some Earth Alliance vessels and concluded that they must have defected to ZAFT in order to fight LOGOS.

Leaning back in his chair, Athrun contemplated on what he should do. He was beginning to have doubts about the war and his reasons for fighting. A part of him really wanted to toss away the uniform and become a civilian, but he was now too deeply involved to do that.

A red light beeped on his monitor and Athrun ignored it. He was not really in the mood to talk to anyone right now. The red light beeped again and he still did his best to ignore it. Finally, he lost his patience and walked over to the monitor. Meyrin's face appeared on the screen and Athrun bit back the retort he was going to make.

"Sorry to disturb you Commander, but Chairman Durandal wishes to see you" said the girl with a smile.

"I am not feeling well right now Meyrin, inform the Chairman that I will see him tomorrow" said Athrun with a lie. Gilbert Durandal was the last person he wanted to see right now. He had heard rumors in his brief ventures out that Shinn was to receive the Order of Nebula for shooting Freedom down. He could not stomach seeing that ceremony.

"I am afraid that the Chairman was rather insistent. Apparently there has been some recent developments regarding Djibril and LOGOS" informed Meyrin.

"What do you mean?" asked Athrun with curiosity.

"He did not say. Do you want know what I have heard?" asked Meyrin sweetly.

"I take it that you've been listening to the secure communication feeds again" asked Athrun with a small frown.

"If you just want to wait….." said Meyrin before she was cut off by the young man.

"Just tell me what you heard" said ZAFT Commander, shaking his head.

"Djibril's dead and LOGOS has been taken out" said Meyrin.

"What?!" exclaimed Athrun, not believing what he was hearing.

"Yeah….its all over the web as well" said the girl.

"Tell the Chairman that I am on my way" said Athrun, turning to put on his overcoat.

"Yes Sir" said Meyrin as the screen went black.

After straightening his uniform, Athrun made his way out of his room and the door closed behind him.

As he walked down the hall, he passed numerous members of the crew who all saluted him. Normally he would have saluted back, but his mind was focused on other things. After another minute of walking, he arrived at his destination.

As he entered the Minerva's conference room, he found Captain Talia Gladys and Supreme Chairman Gilbert Durandal already seated. Athrun also saw various other Admirals and Commanders seated as well.

"Ah Athrun, thank you for coming, now we can start the meeting; you have the floor Admiral Dante" said Gilbert, motioning to the elderly ZAFT officer.

"Thank you Sir; I will be brief. Three days ago, Lord Djibril and all other members of the organization LOGOS were killed at Heavens Base" informed the man with a neutral expression. Other than Durandal and Athrun, there were stunned expressions on the faces of the other people gathered.

"How?" asked a ZAFT Commander in disbelief.

"According to sketchy reports from our intelligence assets in the Alliance, they were killed during an attempt to arrest them by the Atlantic Federation President" answered Admiral Dante.

"I was under the impression that Copland was a minion of Djibrils; why would he turn on his master?" asked another ZAFT officer.

"We are not sure exactly why Copland turned on Djibril. We do know there were growing calls for his removal from office within the Federation Assembly as well as the splintering of the Alliance which could have influenced his decision. Intelligence has no clue though how he was able to accomplish Djibril's death" replied the man with a frown.

"What is the current status of Heavens Base?" asked a ZAFT Admiral.

"The base in now back under the control of the Earth Alliance. After Djibril's death, there was reconciliation between the Eurasian and Atlantic Federation Governments. Heavens Base is full of troops from both nations as well as soldiers from the South African Union" answered Dante.

"What about the Blue Cosmos?" asked Captain Gladys.

"No longer there; intelligence believes that they are hold up at Daedelus Lunar Base. So far, there has been no reaction from them" informed the ZAFT officer.

"Who is now in charge of the Earth Alliance?" asked Athrun.

"The new Supreme Commander of all Earth Forces is a young man by the name of Nichos Ayanami. The man is only eighteen and we are not sure how someone his age could be appointed the Head of the Earth Alliance" replied Dante.

"Nichos?" asked Athrun, recognizing the name.

"You know him?" asked Gilbert Durandal, turning towards the young man and raising an eyebrow.

"We went to school together at Copernicus City six years ago. We were friends for a while until he moved back to Earth" answered Athrun, recalling the memory. He left out the fact that Kira was there as well and it was Nichos who introduced Kira to Athrun.

"What do you know about him? We almost have nothing on him except that he took over for his father as the head Ayanami Industries three years ago after the father died" stated the ZAFT Admiral.

"That he was very smart, a sort of a child genius. He was kind and compassionate, not the sort of person you would see involved in war. However, he did love chess" said Athrun. The Chairman perked up.

"He plays chess" asked Gilbert, very interested.

"He loved it. I was never a good player so he beat me every time we played. He won all sorts of championships on Copernicus City" answered the ZAFT Commander.

"I see" said the PLANT leader thoughtfully.

"What should we do now? Do we still commence Operation Ragnarok?" asked a ZAFT Commander. This caught Athrun's attention.

"Operation Ragnarok?" asked the young man.

"Our attack on Heavens Base; as for the operation, we will have to cancel it for the time being" said Durandal with a small frown.

"Why?" asked Admiral Trenze, one of the top military officers in ZAFT.

"Because there is no point to it" answered Athrun before the PLANT Chairman could respond. "The reason why we are fighting this war is to bring LOGOS to justice. Now that they are gone, we have an opportunity to make peace with the Alliance."

"What if they want to continue fighting?" asked a ZAFT Commander, not convinced.

"To what end? They have lost the support of their citizens so it would be foolish for them to keep fighting. The same goes for us; if we continue this war, the people of the Earth would turn on us as well as the PLANTs. LOGOS is gone, we do not need to fight anymore" said Athrun passionately. It appeared that he successfully convinced most of the people present. Only Admiral Trenze looked skeptical while Dante and Gilbert had neutral expressions.

"I agree with Commander Zala" said Gilbert Durandal with a smile. Most of the room, Athrun included, was shocked by the statement.

"Sir?" asked Trenze, puzzled.

"It would be foolish to continue this war. We will communicate with the Alliance to arrange a cease-fire" said Durandal.

"What about the Blue Cosmos?" asked Talia, surprised at the man's changed attitude.

"What do you think Athrun?" asked Gil.

"We should work with the Alliance in disarming them and bringing them to justice" answered the young man.

"What if they refuse to comply?" asked a ZAFT Commander.

"Then we act; but only as a last resort. Daedelus Base is still an Earth Alliance Base and any aggression could be seen as an act of war" answered Athrun.

"That sounds satisfactory; I will send the communication to the Alliance. You are all dismissed. Athrun, I would like a word" said the PLANT Chairman. Athrun nodded and stayed seated as the others left.

"Is there something else?" asked Athrun as the door closed, leaving them the only two in the room.

"With the War at a standstill, I am curious to what your intentions are" stated Gilbert in a fatherly sort of tone.

"I have yet to decide" said Athrun, a little suspicious of the Chairman.

"I would like it if you stayed. If this ceasefire with the Alliance is to succeed, I need level-headed Commanders like you to advise me" said Durandal with a smile.

Athrun leaned back and thought about it. At the moment, he assumed that he was the only Commander who thought that the ceasefire might work. If he left, it might fall apart and another war could arise.

There was also the status of his team. He considered Lunamaria and Meyrin to be very close friends and did not want to leave them just yet. There was also Shinn to consider as well. If he left, Shinn would walk down a very dark path full of vengeance and hate. As much as Athrun was angry at the boy, he could not leave him like that.

"I have some conditions" stated Athrun.

"Okay" said Durandal.

"I have plans for my team and I want complete autonomy with what I do" said the ZAFT Commander in a firm tone.

"Very well" said the PLANT leader, motioning him to continue.

"I also want in on the planning of any operations in case the ceasefire does not hold up" said Athrun in a firm tone.

"Why?" asked the PLANT leader, surprised.

"I have my reasons; do you accept?" asked the young.

Gilbert leaned back and thought about the ZAFT Commander's demands. They were not too outrageous and Athrun would be where he could be kept an eye on.

"Very well; there is a meeting tomorrow morning, will you be there?" asked Durandal. Athrun nodded.

"I look forward to seeing you there; now if you would excuse me, I have a communication to send" said the Chairman, turning his chair to face the monitor behind him. Athrun stood up and then left the room.

"Was that wise?" asked Rey as he appeared from his concealed position in the room. He was dressed in his standard red ZAFT elite pilot uniform.

"Of course; Athrun will be an excellent pawn for my plans" said Gilbert, smiling at the boy.

"I thought you were going to get rid of him?" asked Rey, taking a seat across from the man.

"That was before Djibril and the other LOGOS members were killed. With them now gone, I have to modify my plans" answered Durandal with a frown.

"How does that involve Athrun?" asked Rey, curious.

"His connection to the new Earth Alliance Supreme Commander could become useful" replied the man.

"Athrun said that the two had not spoken to each other in years though" stated the ZAFT pilot, confused.

"True; but an opportunity might arise where the connection could benefit us" said Gilbert thoughtfully.

"I see; do you think the ceasefire will hold up?" asked Rey.

"It depends; if this Nichos Ayanami is as good as a chess player as Athrun says he is, then he could be an interesting opponent. I have no doubt that he will make his move when the opportunity strikes" answered the PLANT Chairman.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

_Heavens Base_

Nichos watched as the group of officers entered the room. Sitting at the head of the conference table, he leaned back in his chair while the men took their seats. At his sides stood Yu Lan and Yu Fan, dressed in their normal attire and had neutral expressions on their faces.

There were nine officers in all. Three from each of their respective nations: The North Atlantic Federation, the Eurasian Federation, and the South African Union. Currently, all of them were the most senior officers in the Alliance with most of them fairly new to their positions due their predecessors dieing in battle. Once every one was seated, Nichos stood up and began to speak.

"Before we begin, I have a few things to say.

I know most of you will resent me for my age and the fact that I am not in the military. I understand that, but let's make one thing very clear: I am in command. You all will follow my orders or there will be consequences.

Everyone here has a voice. I will show no favoritism to any one nation of this Alliance. If you have an objection or plan, voice it and I will hear it out.

I know that there is some resentment between many of you and your nations. That is all in the past now and we must stay united if we hope to stand against ZAFT.

We are losing this war. Due to the stupidity of Djibril and your predecessors, ZAFT has acquired more territory than it did in the previous war. The people of the Earth have also turned against us and are now supporting Gilbert Durandal.

All of you have been briefed on the Destiny Plan. This would be a disaster and offers enslavement rather than peace. We are the Earth's defense against this plan and we must not let Gilbert Durandal implement it"

When he was done, Nichos saw that he was getting nods of approval from many of the assembled officers. The rest had a neutral expression but the Director could see respect in their eyes. Smiling, he sat down.

"Will the Republic of East Asia be involved in future operations?" asked General Slavic of the Eurasian Federation. A man in his forties, he had blond hair and was known as the Serbian Wolf.

"Unfortunately, Chancellor Wen has declined in participating in the Alliance. According to Intelligence, the man is in bed with ZAFT and has received bribes from the PLANTs" answered Nichos.

"That is not good; the East Asians have a very large fleet. What is stopping them from going over to ZAFT?" asked Admiral Jameson of the Atlantic Federation.

"The civilian population and the military are divided when it comes to ZAFT. Many remember what happened when ZAFT captured the Philippines four years ago and there is still some deep resentment because of it. If Chancellor Wen openly supports ZAFT, then he would face civil war" answered General Motomba of the South African Union. His skin was darker than his comrades and his head was bald.

"Exactly; we will just have to deal with the Republic sitting out on the sidelines" said Director Ayanami with a small smile.

"What about the ceasefire?" asked General Carter. She was the only woman officer in the group and was recently just promoted.

"Probably won't last; Durandal seems too bent on implementing this Destiny Plan of his. It's only a matter of time before he uses some crisis spearhead another war" replied General Alexei, his Russian heritage evident in his voice.

"I agree; that's why we must be prepared when the war recommences" said the Director.

"How?" inquired General Bosana.

"By rebuilding as quickly and quietly as possible as well as positioning our forces without ZAFT noticing" stated Nichos.

"That won't be easy" said General Alexseyev in a deep voice.

"Yes, but there is no alternative; we will proceed slowly. I plan to have a plan ready in a few days. In the mean time, we will start moving our forces around so that they will be strategically placed. We will reconvene tomorrow" said the young man, rising from his chair. The nine officers rose as well and all nodded to Director Ayanami before they left the room.

"None of them mentioned Orb" observed Yu Fan when they were alone in the room.

"No doubt because they have heard what I have heard. That Orb is in the middle of a coup to remove the Sierans from power and place Representative Athha back in control" said Nichos as he leaned back in the chair.

"Do you think they will succeed?" asked Yu Lan, opening a black case and pulling out vial of a greenish liquid, placing it in a syringe.

"Probably; the Sierans are not exactly popular at the moment and without Djibril's support, they are out of allies" answered the young man, taking the syringe from the woman.

Nichos took a deep breath and injected the liquid into the back of his neck. He then dropped the syringe as a rushing pain coursed through his body. Yu Fan grasped the man's hand as he spasm for a minute. Finally as the pain subsided, he breathed heavily.

After a few minutes, General Noland's voice came from the voice comm. on the table.

"Sir, sorry to disturb you but there is a young woman on the comm. channel asking to speak to you. She says that she is your partner" said the General.

"Very well; patch her through" said Nichos, turning his chair to face the monitor.

A long red-haired girl appeared on the screen. She was the same age as Nichos and her face had remnants of burn marks. She had grey eyes and her expression was serious and business like.

"How are you my dear?" asked Director Ayanami, smiling at the girl.

"I am well; am I disturbing you?" asked the young woman.

"No, not at all; I just got finished taking my medication" answered Nichos.

"I see; how are things on your end?" asked the red head.

"Not too bad so far; what about your end?" asked the man.

"Well enough; Chancellor Wen is being too stubborn with his military so they are turning to me for what to do. I have advised them to be patient until the time is right" replied the young woman.

"What about the Equatorial Union?" asked Nichos.

"Most of the military supports me as well as elements of the civilian government. The leadership though is either neutral or aligned with ZAFT. Once the word gets out how the Government has broken their neutral policy by allowing ZAFT to host Lagash base in Equatorial Union waters, I have no doubt I can sway them to our cause" informed the woman.

"Excellent; would they be angry at the Alliance if the base was destroyed by our forces?" asked Nichos.

"The people and the military would be angrier with ZAFT than the Alliance" answered the red head.

"Good; what about you're Extended? Will she be ready to join my Gundam team soon?" asked the Director.

"Yes; the Strike is ready to go as well. When do you want her?" asked the young woman.

"I'll let you know. Anything else?" asked Nichos.

"No; I call if anything comes up" said the girl before the screen went black.

"Huh….forgot to ask about her daughter" said the Director thoughtfully.

"You will never achieve your desires with her" said Yu Lan sardonically.

"I know; I have a different interest now" said Nichos with a lecherous grin. Both Yu Fan and Yu Lan rolled their eyes and groaned.

………………………………………………………………………………………..

_Unknown Location_

The red-haired girl turned around to face her subordinates. They were on the opposite side of her and they looked down at her to await her orders. Both were Asian, one of them skinny while the other was chunky.

"Hmm….that was different" said the woman.

"Oh?" asked one of the men in front of her.

"He didn't try to sweet talk me" stated the red head thoughtfully.

"He must have given up finally" said the other man, amused.

"Yes; get me Ms. Loussier. I need to talk to her" said the young woman. One of the men nodded and left.

Please R&R


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Still don't own GS, GSD, or any other things from various anime and games

_Indonesia_

Nova Loussier scowled as she walked down the narrow hallway of the base. Everyone moved out of her way, knowing full well what would happen if they got in her way. The girl was known for her violent outbursts.

Her features softened as she entered the medical wing of the base. Nodding to a nurse at the reception booth, Nova continued on towards her destination. The medical wing was practically empty, due to the fact that the base had yet to see any action. As she approached her sister's room, the girl slowed down until she was just outside the room.

Taking a deep breath, Nova opened the door and walked inside the room. There was a single occupant lying on the bed. She was unconscious with numerous tubes and wires sticking out of her that were attached to various medical machines. It was a sight that Nova was used to seeing by now.

The girl looked almost exactly like Nova. She had short blond hair and was medium built. When the two were seen side by side, the only difference that could be seen was the eye color. Where as her twin's eyes were purple, Nova's were red; it was said that each set of eyes represented the twin's personality. Stellar had a child like personality where as Nova's was more mature.

Taking a chair from the corner, Nova sat down next to the bed and reached out to hold her sister's hand. It had been over a week since Nova had recovered Stellar from the lake in Berlin. Nova had just arrived to see Impulse take off. While the girl searched the wreckage of the Destroy, Nova could not find her sister and considered the possibility of Impulse's pilot taking her. Finally, Nova happened to look down into the lake and spotted blond hair at the bottom.

Without hesitating, Nova dived into the freezing water. Swimming to the bottom, she grabbed a hold of her sister's body and swam to the surface faster than any normal human. Once they were on dry land, Nova put her ear to Stellar's chest to see if there was a heartbeat. Hearing a faint pulse, she grabbed a syringe from her belt and injected its contents into her sister's body. Nova then scooped her sister in her arms and headed back to the Strike.

Activating its mirage colloid, Nova flew her Gundam straight to the cargo ship which was just off the coast. The ship was not really a cargo ship at all but a sort of spy ship for the organization Nova belonged to. When the Gundam arrived, the ship made its way back to base.

The doctors were able to save her life despite her injuries. The drugs that Stellar used had an unusual side effect of preserving her life when she was close to death. However, she was now in a coma and has yet to awaken.

Nova loved her sister dearly. She was all the family that Nova had left since the death of their parents by the hands of Coordinators. The two had been taken by the Blue Cosmos where they were made into Extendeds. However, Stellar proved to be the better of the duo and was placed within Phantom Pain while Nova was left at the facility. Stellar had cried while she was taken away while Nova looked on sadly.

When the Blue Cosmos decided that Nova was worthless, they had tried to kill the girl. Nova managed to escape but found she was alone in the world and was fated to die without the drugs. Fortunately, she was found by the organization that saved her and brought her into the fold.

"I have to leave soon, so it will be a while before I can see you again" said Nova to the comatose girl.

There was no reply as usual. The doctors were not sure when the blond would wake up and could do nothing for her condition.

"I plan to visit as often as I could. As soon as you wake up, we can be a family again and will never be separated. The people I work for will let us do anything after the organization's goals are achieved.

I also plan to avenge you as well. It is the fault of Impulse's pilot that you are in this condition. He could have helped you, but gave you back to the Blue Cosmos so you could be used again.

Just wait for me sister"

Nova then kissed Stellar's forehead as she stood up. Taking one last glance at the blond, she left the room.

Once she was outside, Nova took a deep breath and let it out. Closing her eyes, she was in deep thought about her coming assignment. Hearing the screeching of wheels, Nova opened her eyes and saw her boss heading towards her.

"Any changes?" asked Fllay Allster as she wheeled herself up to the blonde. Dressed in brown business suit with a matching skirt, her long red hair did not seem to go with the attire. The wheelchair that Fllay was confined to was black and self propelled. The woman had refused to use an automatic wheelchair.

"No ma'am; thank you for asking" said Nova. Over the past year, the Extended learned to consider the woman a close friend despite being her boss. Fllay's twin girls treated Nova like a big sister and Nova could not help but seeing herself and Stellar in the young girls. Fllay never talked about their father but Nova had the feeling that the two kids resembled him very much with the brown hair and purple eyes.

"Not a problem; I am sorry for having to tear you away from her" said Fllay with an apologetic smile.

"I understand; has Director Ayanami informed you of who will be teamed up with me?" asked Nova.

"Not in person but he did send me their profiles. All three are members of Phantom Pain with one of them being a teammate of your sisters" informed the red-head.

"I see" said the blonde. She did not know what to think about that.

"I know you do not work well with others but I am asking you to try. You cannot take on all your opponents at once" said Fllay in a firm but caring voice.

"I will try; that is all that I can promise" said the Extended in a firm tone of her own. Fllay nodded and the two headed down the hall together.

"I have a favor to ask" said Fllay looking at her companion as they traveled.

"Yes?" asked Nova, curious to what the woman was going to request.

"When you kick the pilot's ass who took down the Freedom, record the battle for me. I want to savor it" said the red-head in a somewhat hateful tone. It was well known that Fllay hated Shinn Asuka and wanted him dead.

"Not a problem ma'am" said the Extended with a smile.

………………………………………………………………………………………..

Lacus lunged at Kira as soon as he came through the shuttle door.

Surprised, he barely had time to react as the pink haired girl wrapped her arms around him in a deep embrace. Kira hugged her back and there was silence between the two for a few minutes.

"I am glad that you are alright" said Lacus as she unwrapped her arms from the young man.

"It wasn't too serious" said Kira with a slight grin. Lacus then glared at the man which sent shivers through his body.

"You were almost killed! Do you know how scared I was when I heard the news?" exclaimed the Pink Princess, tears forming in her eyes.

"I am sorry" said Kira quietly, looking down. Lacus's features softened and she took his hands in hers.

"Just promise me that you will be more careful" said the woman with a smile. Kira nodded and smiled back. After another embrace, the couple moved onto more serious matters.

"Do you think the ceasefire will hold up?" asked the Ultimate Coordinator.

"I don't know; with Djibril dead, peace could come about. However, this Destiny Plan that Chairman Durandal wants to initiate makes me think that the war will never end" replied the Songstress.

"Was there anymore information that could be gathered at Mendel?" asked Kira as the two floated down the hall of the Eternal. The ship was currently docked at Terminal's hidden factory near the debris belt.

"There wasn't enough time to check. There was a small fleet of ZAFT ships in the area and Martin had to leave before we could be detected" answered Lacus with a small frown.

"Did they give you any problems?" asked Kira, concerned.

"We managed to evade them. Andrew thinks they might still be in the area" answered the woman. Kira nodded and they floated into the hanger. In it was a newly built Gundam that towered over them.

The two Coordinators gazed up at the X20A Strike Freedom. It was of Kira's personal design and was one of the most advanced Gundams ever built.

"What are we going to do?" asked Kira suddenly, breaking the silence.

"I don't know; just prepare for the worst. If war breaks out, I am taking the Eternal to Orb and the rest of our allies will gather there as well" answered the Songstress.

"That makes sense; Cagalli is now back in charge of Orb now. Gathering there will be the best strategy" said the Ultimate Coordinator thoughtfully.

"Are you surprised that your friend Nichos is now head of the Earth Alliance?" asked Lacus. The communication from Murrue indicated that Kira used to go to school with the man.

"Yeah; he was a great strategist but I never would have figured him for running the Alliance" said Kira. In truth, he was quite disturbed in seeing his former friend again. Both he and Athrun had lost contact with Nichos years ago when he moved back to Earth.

Kira had no idea how much Nichos had changed since he last saw him. Though they were good friends, there was always something mysterious about Nichos that Kira could not figure out. He was brilliant and one of the smartest people that Kira knew.

"How long will you be staying?" asked Lacus as cheerfully as possible, changing the subject. In truth, she was looking forward to just spending time with the young man.

"As long as you want" answered Kira, thinking that it was the best possible answer he could give. Lacus smiled and took his hands in hers.

The two left the hanger holding hands.

Author's Note: I know the chapter is short and promise the next one will be longer. It will also feature Shinn and the gang as well as some new characters. Also Nova's team will be revealed. As for the pairings, the only definite one is ShinnxStellar and YzakxShiho for now.

Please R&R


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Still don't own GS, GSD, or any other material used from various games and anime.

_Heavens Base_

Captain Samantha Badgiruel stepped off the shuttle and admired the view of the base. It was larger than she thought and was everything was in chaos as people filled the tarmac. There were various mobile suits out as well with Samantha recognizing them as being Windams, Dagger Ls, and Strike Daggers.

She was a little surprised to see the obsolete MS. Though they were the latest suits three years ago, they would be nothing but cannon fodder now.

Throwing her duffle bag over her shuttle, Samantha headed towards the two MPs that seemed to be waiting for her. It wasn't really a surprise that they were there waiting for her. Samantha had a history of wandering off to bars when she was supposed to report in.

Her sister Natarle once made the comment that she had the genius of an Admiral but the personality of a fighter jock. At the time Samantha found the comment funny and told her older sister that she was wound up too tight.

Natarle lived her life by the book. It was a trait that she had gotten from their father. Samantha however, was very loose and went against the book every chance she got. It was something that drove the people around her nuts.

When her sister died, Samantha and her family went into deep mourning. Her mother did her best to get by while her father, a retired Atlantic Federation Admiral, closed himself off. Samantha went on a drinking binge and was nearly kicked out of the military for insubordination. However, since Samantha was regarded a military genius, she was confined to her quarters for a few months.

"Captain Badgiruel?" asked one of the MPs, looking her over. Samantha was dressed in usual attire of an Earth Alliance officer except for a few quirks. Her overcoat was only half buttoned which showed a bit of cleavage and her skirt was a little shorter than what regulations called for. Samantha's hair was long, reaching down past her neck, and was purple which she had dyed herself.

"That is me" said the woman, cheerfully. The other MP raised an eyebrow at her jovial personality and seemed to be trying not to focus on her chest.

"We are here to escort you to Admiral Jameson's office" said the man, motioning for her to follow him. Samantha nodded and trailed the man while his partner followed from behind.

As they passed numerous military personnel and equipment, something caught Samantha's eye. She watched a pair of what appeared to be newly built fighter jets being hauled out of one of the hangers. They resembled the old F22s that Samantha had seen pictures of when she was a kid. These fighters were much larger though and painted black. The trio continued on and Samantha then lost sight of the vehicles.

As they entered the inner workings of the base, Samantha was somewhat surprised at the number of armed personnel standing guard. Some were standard soldiers while others looked like elite troops. They were dressed in a type of dark body armor that the woman had never seen before and armed with heavy duty assault rifles.

After ten minutes of walking, the group turned a corner and headed to a door at the end of the hall. It was guards by to soldiers standing either side of the entrance. One of them nodded at the MPs and opened the door for them.

Inside was an office which was medium size. Admiral Jameson sat in a desk, which faced the entrance, reading reports. In his early fifties, he was bald and his face was clean of any facial hair. Looking up at the new arrivals, Jameson nodded and the two MPs left the room, leaving Samantha and the Admiral alone.

Motioning for the woman to take a seat, the Admiral continued to look over the papers in front of him. After a minute of silence, he looked up at Samantha and smiled. Samantha was not sure whether to feel tense or relieved.

"How was your flight?" asked Jameson.

"Good sir" answered Captain Badgiruel in a somewhat friendly tone.

"How is your father?" asked the Admiral. Samantha's father was well known in the Federation military for his thirty years of service.

"He is well" answered the woman, simply. The last time that she spoke to her father, Samantha had just been promoted to Captain. The exchange went well but was still tense due to the fact that the daughter had just been released from the stockade for public drunkenness.

"Good; I bet you are wondering why you are here" said the man with a grin.

"I am" said Samantha, wishing that he would just tell her.

"The High Command has an assignment for you" stated Jameson in a neutral tone.

"Yes?" said the Captain, curious.

"Director Ayanami believes that the cease fire will not last. So until it is broken, we have been doing our best to prepare for the coming conflict. Not just a rebuilding of our forces but new plans for future operations against ZAFT. That is where you come in" said the Admiral.

"What is that Sir?" asked Samantha, her interest perked. She had long concluded that the present peace would not last. Despite the PLANT's claims that this war was not about territory, Samantha held the belief that the nation was not being entirely truthfully in the declaration.

There was also something about Gilbert Durandal that rubbed her the wrong way. During Gilbert's speech in revealing LOGOS to the world, Samantha felt that the man had a little too much information and evidence on the group for such a short amount of time that the war was being fought.

"According to all the officers that you served under, you are a misfit and a drunk. However, they also all agree that you are extremely competent and a tactical genius on the battlefield. So we are giving you the assignment of bringing down one of ZAFT's most troublesome unit" answered Jameson.

"The Minerva?" asked Captain Badgiruel, keeping the excitement out of her voice. Samantha had lost a few friends to the ZAFT ship and was looking forward to some payback.

"Yes, the Minerva as well as its compliment of Gundams. That ship has done a lot of damage to our forces and it is about time that she be brought down" answered the man, determination in his voice.

"I agree Sir; what are you giving me to accomplish my mission?" asked Samantha, nodding. She knew that she would need some heavy firepower to take down the ship.

"This" answered Jameson, handing her a photo. Samantha looked at it for a minute before looking at the Admiral with curiosity.

"It looks like the Archangel" stated the woman.

"It is similar but is a new class of vessel. It is called the Seraphim. As you can see, it is about eighty meters longer and the wing flaps are longer as well which retract when needed. The armor has been coated with a type of anti-beam which is able to take a few hits more before damage ensues. The bridge area is also more shielded and the bridge itself is able to lower into a more secure part of the vessel during battle. The Seraphim is equipped with an N-Jammer Canceller so it is powered by a nuclear reactor" informed the Admiral.

"What kind of weapons is it armed with?" asked Samantha, feeling giddy about her new ship.

"Some of the standard armaments like Lohengrins, Gottfrieds, Valiants, SAMs, and CIWSs. However, there are some new experimental weapons as well" answered Jameson with a slight smile.

"Experimental weapons?" asked Captain Badgiruel.

"Yes; as you can see, there is a space between the two catapults which opens up. That is where the new weaponized form of mass driver is deployed" responded the man.

"As in the mass drivers used to send objects to space?" asked Samantha in disbelief.

"Affirmative; I cannot tell you exactly how it works but it has been proven effective in mock battles. It fires a single projectile accelerates in speed as it travels. Therefore, the weapon is best used at long distances and ideal for first strikes since it is hard to dodge. The projectile itself is basically a large armored piecing bullet that can be modified to explode on impact" informed the Admiral.

"What other experimental weapons does it have?" asked Samantha, impressed by what she has been hearing so far.

"A compliment of a new type of floating mines that home in on targets. Armed with a powerful explosive, they can be deployed over the battlefield to either set up an ambush of eliminate pursuers. Each mine is equipped with a mirage colloid so they will be invisible to the enemy" answered Jameson.

"What about mobile suits?" asked Captain Badgiruel.

"Ten mobile suits composed of four Gundams and six Slaughter Daggers. You also will be carrying two of our new F-42 Core Boosters which are high speed Fighters. More maneuverable than current mobile armors, they house two particle cannons as well as a compliment of missiles" informed the Admiral. Samantha nodded and concluded that that was what she saw on the tarmac. When she read about the Gundams and their pilots, Samantha raised her head and looked at the Admiral in slight alarm.

"I understand how you feel but it cannot be helped. Phantom Pain is currently the only ones with Gundams presently" said Jameson with an apologetic smile.

"I see that only one out of the four is an Extended and two of them are normal; what about the fourth?" asked the Captain.

"I cannot answer that. Only Director Ayanami has that information. Her mobile suit is supposed to be an upgraded version of the original Strike" said the man.

"I see" said Samantha as Admiral Jameson handed her some more documents. They contained more information about the crew and their capabilities. It was a pretty diverse group with all the major nations of the Alliance represented.

While her XO was from the Atlantic Federation, her chief engineer was from the Eurasian Federation. Her intelligence officer was from the South African Union and her medical staff came from South America. This was the first time that Captain Badgiruel seen such a mixture other than the High Command.

"Do you want to see her?" asked Admiral Jameson with a smile. Samantha nodded and the two stood up and left the office.

Following the Admiral down the hall, Samantha was feeling giddy at the thought of seeing her new ship. Her sister Natarle had contacted her when she was given the Dominion to command. Samantha at the time was excited for her sister and wished to one day command a ship of the same class. However, she was now given command of a ship that appeared to be vastly superior.

Entering the hanger section of the base after walking for a good ten minutes, the duo passed numerous assembly lines where Windams were being built. Tech crews were running about and the sounds of heavy machinery could be heard.

One assembly line contained two Destroy Gundams that were being worked on. The suit towered over the Admiral and Captain as they continued on. Samantha had seen videos of the Destroy in action and marveled at its performance. However, she was not impressed on how it was deployed against civilians.

"Director Ayanami plans to have the Destroy series on the front lines" said Jameson as he observed the woman staring at the giants.

"Oh?" said the Captain, looking back at him as they continued walking.

"Yes; though they will be piloted by normal pilots instead of Extended" replied the man as the duo lost sight of the massive suits.

As they continued on, the two officers approached an elevator guarded by two soldiers. Raising their rifles in salute, the one on the right pressed one of the buttons next to him and the elevator doors opened up. Admiral Jameson and Captain Badgiruel stepped inside and the doors closed. The elevator then began to descend.

"I didn't realize that the Heavens Base was this big" stated Samantha after a minute had gone by.

"There is a lot to this base than meets the eye; we are heading to the shipyards that are located in a secret geofront under the base itself. A channel runs out of it, allowing finished ships to be transported to our mass drivers in either Panama or Victoria" informed the man.

Samantha nodded and the elevator stopped and the doors opened. As the two officers stepped out, Captain Badgiruel stood awed at what she saw.

It was the biggest shipyard that she had ever seen; far larger than the San Diego and Newfoundland shipyards. It filled the entire geofront which could possibly fit a city the size of Baltimore within it. She could see Nelsons, Drakes, and other warships being constructed.

The Admiral pointed and Samantha saw her ship. The construction looked to be going smoothly as most of the outer hull was completed. The hull was a dark blue with streaks of silver running along the borders between the sections of the ship. The weapon's ports were open as technicians worked on them. Overall, the ship looked menacing and Samantha was looking forward to her future encounters with ZAFT forces.

Captain Samantha Badgiruel smirked evilly.

………………………………………………………………………………………

_Orb_

Cagalli Yula Athha sighed as she rubbed her temples. Her small headache was threatening to get worse as she resisted the temptation to scream out loud in frustration.

Currently seated at her desk, the mountain of paperwork in front of her was at least two feet high. During her absence, the stack had been severely neglected and actually increased in size.

Ever since her restoration to power, the blonde has been working around the clock to repair the damage both Yuna and his father had done to her beloved nation. It was a daunting task that was slowly being accomplished.

Every last Orb soldier and equipment was now back within the country. Cagalli, as soon as she retook office, made that her first priority. Orb was now once again a neutral nation, neither supporting ZAFT nor the Alliance.

After signing a paper requesting more funds for farming, Cagalli looked up at the clock and slightly smiled. It was almost time for lunch and she was looking forward to the break since she would be dinning with Murrue and Miriallia

Signing another paper, the blonde looked up at the picture of her and her brother. It was almost two weeks now since he had returned to space. Cagalli was still afraid for him since his battle with Impulse where he was almost killed.

There was a time when Cagalli felt sorry for Impulse's pilot. Now she was furious at Shinn Asuka and longed for vengeance against him. The bastard had nearly taken away the last remaining member of her family and had laughed about it over the open comm.

Cagalli was also furious at Athrun as well. Not only for participating in trying to shoot down the Archangel with her on it, but for abandoning her brother by not stopping Impulse's pilot. Athrun Zala had crossed a line when he chose to side with ZAFT over his friends and the Orb leader was not sure that she could ever forgive him for it; despite her personal feelings. She still wore his ring though; not sure why.

Standing up and stretching, she gazed out her office window. The city was bustling with life as people moved about. Cagalli watched as a class of young children walked across a crosswalk while their teacher pointed at the Parliament building, explaining its importance. The blonde smile at their innocent looks and hoped that they would last.

So far, there were not many problems in maintaining Orb's neutrality and security. The ceasefire made things easier. The Alliance seemed to be ignoring the nation and ZAFT as well.

She knew full well that Gilbert Durandal would not be contacting her, given their recent history, but she was slightly surprised at the lack of contact from the Earth Forces. They must have known full well of her current resentment towards ZAFT and should be capitalizing on it. However, she had not heard a peep from them.

Cagalli did know for a fact that they were rebuilding their forces. The intelligence she had received from Terminal reported that the Atlantic and Eurasian factories were working around the clock to spew out armaments ranging from mobile suits to ships. Terminal also reported that there were more Destroys being constructed at Heavens Base which made the blonde a little edgy since she had viewed the monster's carnage first hand.

The Orb leader knew for a fact that the ceasefire would not last despite her hopes. When she had been briefed by Lacus on Gilbert Durandal's Destiny Plan, Cagalli had been horrified at its implications. Peace was not worth that price.

It was still unknown what Director Ayanami's plans were. Terminal's intelligence operatives hadn't been able to dig up any useful data on the man. The only thing they did know was that he was directly involved in the elimination of Djibril and LOGOS.

Kira's past friendship with the young man had been a surprise to the blonde. From what he told her about their time together, Nichos Ayanami did not seem like the person who would be involved in a war despite his chess skills. Something felt off and Cagalli did not know what.

"It was then that Kisaka walked into the office. Wearing an Orb military uniform of a full Colonel, he looked the stack of papers and frowned at the girl. Cagalli smiled sheepishly.

"Just taking a small break" said the blond as she returned to the desk.

"I understand how you feel but this must be done" said Kisaka sternly.

"I know; you would think Yuna and Unato would least have kept up with the paperwork" grumbled the woman, returning to the desk.

"I am glad they didn't; there would have more things for you to fix" said Kisaka with a small smile. The Father and son were now enjoying a hefty prison sentence for treason. However, with both the father and son were nothing compared to the youngest sibling,

Yavin Seiran, who seemed to be far more ruthless and intelligent, was now head of the Seiran family and its resources, giving him a great deal of power. However, he seemed to be loyal to Cagalli for the time being.

"I suppose so" said Cagalli with a sigh. Reading another document, she signed it and tossed it in the finished pile.

"After lunch, you have a meeting with Colonel Roanoke" said brown skinned man with a small frown. Cagalli nodded as she looked over another document.

Accepting his defection into the Orb military, Cagalli still didn't know what to quite think of the man. His abilities made him a major asset to Orb and she was thankful to have him. There was also the nature of his true identity.

There was evidence confirming that he was indeed Mwu La Flaga. However, the man had memory of being that person, much to Murrue's sadness. The only answer that Cagalli and everyone could come up with was that Djibril must have erased the man's memories.

Looking up at the clock and seeing it was lunchtime, Cagalli stood up and prepared to leave the room. Looking back at the pile of paperwork, she sighed before heading out the door.

Cagalli wondered how her father did it.

Author's note: I hope everyone is satisfied with how I portrayed Cagalli in this chapter. I tried to make it both real and IC. Let me know what you think with constructive criticism if you did not like it.

Next chapter will go back to Athrun as his plans for the Zala team go into effect. There will be more with Nichos as well as Yzak, Dearka, and Shiho.

Please R&R


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed or Gundam Seed Destiny

"YOU'RE WHAT?!" yelled Dearka in disbelief. Both Yzak and Shiho rolled their eyes and let out a sigh at the blonds overreaction.

"I am resigning my commission" repeated Yzak with a growl. Sitting behind his desk, he had his face hidden by his clasped hands that sat on the desk.

The three were gathered in Yzak's office aboard the Voltaire. The ship was currently docked at Armory One and had remained there since the ceasefire went into effect.

"But Why?" asked Dearka incredulously. He knew very well that Yzak lived for military life.

"So I can take up my mother's position on the Council at her request" answered the silver-haired man in a bored tone.

"That's ridiculous; you hate politics" said the blonde in a matter of fact tone.

"Mother believes it is necessary for me" said Yzak.

"Don't you think you're getting too old for the momma's boy thing?" inquired Dearka annoyed. It was well known that Yzak could never say no to his mother.

"Do I need to remind you that at some point you will also have to take your father's place on the Council as well?" asked the ZAFT Commander, suppressing the urge to throw something at his friend.

"Don't remind me; my father's been harping on me lately about that. I sometimes wish that half the seats on the Supreme Council were not hereditary" said Dearka with a groan.

"When do you leave?" asked Shiho for the first time since Yzak had called for the gathering.

"In a week; there are a few things I need to take care of before it becomes official" answered the young man.

"What do you mean?" asked Dearka.

"I have to choose my replacement for the team and as the Commander of the Voltaire" answered the ZAFT Commander. He prepared himself for the coming onslaught.

"So Command is not sending someone?" inquired Shiho with an eyebrow raised.

"No; I plan to promote someone to take my place" stated Yzak.

"Who?" asked Dearka, hoping it was him. He was unfortunately disappointed when Yzak gestured at their female companion.

"Thank you, but I don't understand why" said the woman, confused. There were more people on the ship that she felt were more qualified.

"Yeah; why not me?" asked Dearka, getting angry.

"Shiho is the only one besides yourself that I trust with my team and the reason why I didn't pick you is your lack of command experience as well as the fact that you are still on probation for defecting in the last war" answered the silver-haired young man. Yzak watched his friend's anger subside.

"So a week huh? I guess we'll have to plan a party then" stated Dearka with a toothy grin. Yzak just glared at him.

"I agree with him" said Shiho, startling the two.

"It would be good for the morale of the crew" she said again before any of them could get a word out.

"Fine; Dearka, you can plan a party. However, keep it simple. That is an order" said Yzak in the most commanding tone he could muster. The blond smiled back at him and saluted before making his exit. Yzak let out a long sigh at the coming headache.

"He took it better than I expected" said Shiho once the two were alone.

"He wouldn't have if he had known that I had told you everything earlier" said the ZAFT Commander.

"Then lucky for you I am a good actor" said the young woman with a smile.

"I will keep in touch when I can; you and Dearka will have to be my ears in ZAFT" said Yzak seriously.

"Has your mother been able to come up with anything?" asked Shiho with a nod.

"No; Durandal is good at keeping his secrets. Maybe with me on the Council, he will think I am inferior to my mother and drop his guard" said the man with a smirk.

"I am starting to think things were easier when there were just two sides to this war" reminisced Shiho.

"Things will get more complicated when this so called ceasefire finally ends. My only question is who will be the one to strike first: Durandal or the Alliance?" said Yzak.

"With the Alliance fortifying the moon; it could be them who attack first" suggested his companion.

"I've seen the intelligence photos; the only things we've seen are the construction of defensive hardware around their bases. There has been no increase in the number of ships in their fleets and what they have currently is not to their advantage" informed the young man. Shiho nodded to concede the point.

"So same time?" asked Shiho with a grin, changing the subject. She walked over to behind the desk and sat in the man's lap.

"If you bring the food this time; I was nearly caught the last time" said Yzak, brushing a little bit of her hair out of her face.

"You're the one who wanted to keep the relationship a secret from everyone" pointed out Shiho.

"I didn't want to have the crew, not to mention our parents, interfering in our lives. If Dearka knew, it would be a nightmare" retorted Yzak. The young woman nodded her head in agreement.

"This will be the last week we will be able to be together for a while" stated the woman with a sad smile.

"I guess we'll have to make the most of it" said Yzak with a smile of his own.

The two locked lips while Yzak fumbled around for the door lock.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Lunamaria yawned as she stood in Minerva's hanger. Next to her, stood Shinn and Rey who were equally as tired. Behind them, stood the rest of their team in their green uniforms while she and her companions were in red.

Athrun had made them get up three hours earlier than normal. It was a sort of a shock sine many of the assembled figured that they would be able to relax more because of the ceasefire.

Luna looked over at Shinn and Rey. Shinn had a slight scowl on his face while Rey wore an impassive look. Lunamaria knew that both Shinn and Athrun were still at odds over the incident with the Freedom and did not know what to do. Though Shinn was her friend and comrade from the academy, she had feelings for Athrun.

Commander Zala finally made his appearance by walking into the hanger. Dressed in his formal whites, he had a neutral expression on his face as he moved to face the assembled. Taking his time to study everyone, he took a deep breath and began to speak.

"With the present ceasefire, I have decided to make some changes to the team. First off, I am officially promoting Lunamaria Hawk to Sub-Commander" stated Athrun with a smile to Luna.

Everyone else was shocked, including Lunamaria. While she had ambitions on being able to command her own team, the red-head never believed it would happen this soon. As a Sub-Commander, she would be heavily involved in commanding units on the field as well as being involved in operational planning for the team.

"If the ceasefire ends, there will be times that I will be involved in commanding operations on a broader scale than on the field. This will be when Sub-Commander Hawk will be in complete charge. I will expect you to follow her orders" stated the ZAFT Commander, giving a firm look at Shinn. The youth just glared back while Rey narrowed his eyes.

"We will also be conducting drills to enhance our teamwork in combat. I do not want anymore pure solo actions. This kind of combat is dangerous and could get people killed" continued Athrun. He hoped that this would reign in Shinn on the battlefield.

"The drills will begin in three hours so check your mobile suits; dismissed. Luna, Shinn, Rey stay" said Athrun in a loud voice. The rest of the team headed towards their Zakus and Goufs.

"I've decided not to pilot Legend; instead it will be going to Rey. Shinn will keep Destiny while Lunamaria will pilot Impulse" informed Athrun.

"What about you Commander?" asked Luna.

"I have a Gouf that I am personally having done. I will pilot that" answered the blue-haired man.

"Why was Lunamaria picked as Sub-Commander?" asked Rey. The tone of his voice seemed to anger Luna for some reason.

"Out of the three of you, she is the most suitable for command as well as the person whom I trust the most" answered Athrun in a firm voice. Both Shinn and Rey looked angry while Luna beamed.

"What do you mean "trust the most"?" asked Shinn with a frown.

"Lunamaria knows how to keep her cool in battle as well as follow orders. She is the one person I can count on the battlefield by my side. I also consider her a close personal friend" stated the ZAFT Commander.

"It sounds to me like you are using your personal feelings to justify yourself. Feelings do not belong on the battlefield" said Rey. Luna turned to glare at the blond. Though he was caught by surprise by the comment the last time Rey made the statement, Athrun was ready this time.

"Never realized how much of a hypocrite you are" stated the ZAFT Commander with amusement.

"What do you mean by that?" asked the blond darkly.

"We've seen Shinn lose his cool on the battlefield numerous times, yet I have not once seen you chasten him about his personal feelings. During his battle with Freedom, Shinn was fighting with vengeance in his heart for Stellar and yet you rebuke me about my feelings. That makes you a hypocrite just like my former Commander Rau Le Creuset" said Athrun.

"The war hero?" asked Shinn, not sure what to think of the exchange between Athrun and Rey.

"The psychopath and murderer; I am not authorized to tell you but I will say this: that man was a monster and deserved his fate" stated the blue-haired young man with anger in his voice. Rey, though resumed an impassive feature, clenched his hands tightly by his sides.

"Lets head to my office Luna; there we can go over the plans for the drill. The rest of you are dismissed" said Athrun. Shinn nodded and headed towards Destiny while Rey turned to head towards Legend.

"Are you sure I am ready for this Athrun?" asked the red-head once Shinn and Rey were out of earshot.

"I didn't do this out of spite Luna. I do feel that you are up to the task" said the ZAFT Commander, giving her a reassuring smile.

"Thank you; I won't let you down" said the ZAFT elite with pride.

"I know you won't. I have some things I need your input on so let's head to the office" said Athrun as he walked.

Lunamaria walked by his side, only partially listening to the man. She still couldn't believe what just happened. Luna couldn't wait to tell Meyrin. Something then occurred to her.

Would she have to dress in whites like Commander Zala?

Author's Note: I hoped I kept everyone IC in this chapter despite the fluff between Yzak and Shiho. This is a definite pairing for the fic so I hope you enjoy it.

If you wondering why Shinn and Luna did not know about Rau's actions during the last war; from what I understand the PLANT Supreme Council covered up his crimes. So as far as anyone else is concerned, Rau is a war hero despite being the nut that he was.

It is still up in the air for who I will pair Athrun up with. I will have some Athrun and Cagalli interaction down the road late in the fic. However the final verdict is still out. I might just give Athrun a Harem just for the hell of it, but that depends on what you readers think of that.

Next chapter will feature Nova and her new team as well as Nichos and his plans. Expect some revelations, new Gundam features, and the return of an old friend (one who is still alive by the end of Seed) and his ties to Fllay and Nichos. Updates come with reviews and constructive criticism is welcomed.

Please R&R


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed or Destiny

Nichos smiled at his opponent.

Moving one of his knights, his opponent frowned as his rook was taken. His opponent frowned even more when he realized that his queen was now exposed with no protection or support.

"Has ZAFT uncovered what we are doing on the moon?" asked Nichos as he leaned back and watched his opponent ponder his next move.

"No sir; all they have been able to gather is that we are fortifying the defenses of our Lunar bases" answered Abraham Obali, head of Alliance Intelligence, as he stared at the chess board. He was brought in from the South African Union and was recently appointed to the post by Director Ayanami.

"So the shipyard has yet to be detected, good. I have plans for the ships being constructed there" stated the Alliance Leader with a smirk.

"I've seen the specs for the new _Bismarck_-class Battleship and am impressed. It seems to be superior than the _Girty Lue_ and _Nazca_ classes" said the Intelligence Chief, moving his queen to safety behind a trio of pawns.

"While I like the Girty Lues, it seems more appropriate to design a new type of battleship associated with the Alliance than the Blue Cosmos. This will also be the first pure Alliance battleship designed to have mobile suits. That was another mistake we never corrected since the last war" said Nichos, moving his knight to retreat.

"How many suits is it able to carry?" asked General Slavic, standing along side General Noland. The two were watching the game with interest since they were chess players themselves. The four of them were inside the main conference room of Heavens base.

"Ten; which is four more than a Nazca. While it is far slower than the ZAFT ship, it makes up for it in armor and firepower. However, the Bismarck's are massive, expensive, and time consuming to produce" answered Obali, moving one of his own knights.

"This is probably why only seven are being built. I have to admit that the location of the shipyard is a surprise. It's the last place that ZAFT would ever think to look on the moon" said General Noland.

"Yes, but until then our orbital fleets can only be designated for a defensive role. Our failed nuclear attack on the PLANTs eliminated the chance for an offensive role, even with the ships being constructed here in Heavens Base. Once the Bismarcks come online, that will change" said the Intelligence Head as he watched his boss move a rook to threaten his knight.

"At least we are just about ready on Earth. Once the African and European campaigns begin, ZAFT will find itself on the receiving end" said Nichos as he looked up at the conference rooms' main monitor.

On the screen was a map of the world showing Alliance and ZAFT territory. Currently ZAFT was in possession of territory from Gibraltar to Berlin, giving them full control of Western Europe except for Britain. ZAFT had also captured all areas surrounding the Mediterranean with the exception of the former nations of Israel, Lebanon, and Turkey. All of North Africa was in ZAFT's hands as well.

Before the ceasefire, ZAFT's move into the Middle East was met with very deep resistance despite the victory at Gulnahan Ravine. The strong alliance of Muslims, Christians, and Jews fought ZAFT to a standstill. The three faiths were no longer at odds with each other and were united forever against the PLANTs and their Coordinator citizens.

"At least the Seraphim is completed" said Noland with a smile.

"What about the Gundams?" asked Nichos, watching his opponents queen fall into his trap.

"The upgrades have been completed for the Strike Noir, Verde Buster, and Sword Calamity. The Neo Strike arrived this morning and is already to go as well" answered the EA General.

"Good, I'll have to say hello to Nova later; Slavic, how are the Destroys that have been assigned to you?" asked the EA leader. Obali moved his queen into Nichos's trap and watched in horror as it was taken by a bishop that he had missed.

"Both are operational and their pilots are ready. My army is ready to move on your orders" stated Slavic with a determined tone of voice.

"Very well gentleman. That is all for now. I trust that both of you are looking forward to tomorrow's game?" asked Nichos with a smile, looking up at them. Both of them smiled as well and nodded. They then saluted him and left the room.

"You aren't going to tell them the projected time of ZAFT's attack?" asked Abraham, taking the bishop with a pawn.

"Soon I will; has Gilbert's spy relayed the "leaked" info to his master yet?" asked Director Ayanami, maneuvering his queen.

"This morning; we tracked it like we always do. The agent has yet to realize that we are on to him" stated the South African with a smirk as he moved a rook to go after the queen.

"Excellent; we will have to keep a close eye on ZAFT's fleet and the Minerva. He will use that ship to attack the target" said Director Ayanami, retreating his queen.

"It makes sense; we'll have a better timetable once it heads into space. What about the agent himself?" asked the Intelligence chief, chasing after the queen with the rook and a knight.

"We'll eliminate him once war erupts" answered Nichos with a smile at the board.

"Understood; Yavin contacted me. It seems that Athha has increased the production of mobile suits and ships for its orbital fleet" informed the man, frowning as his rook was taken by another rook.

"I see; from what I have been hearing, it seems that the blond is finally becoming an effective leader" said Nichos, watching Obali take his rook with a pawn.

"Do you think she will be a threat to the Unification Initiative?" asked Obali with a smile at his recent kill, not knowing it was in vain.

"I don't believe so; as long as we don't threaten Orb, she won't move against us. Athha might even back us once she realizes that this could bring peace and stability to the Earth; It could also be beneficial to have Orb as an independent entity in dealing with neutral parties" answered Director Ayanami, moving his other rook and knight to go after his opponent's king.

"I believe both Sai and Fllay have said the same thing" said the South African, realizing that there was nothing he could do for his king.

"They know her better than we do; I actually look forward to meeting Kira's sister" said Nichos with a smile.

"Is that because of personal reasons?" asked Obali with a smirk.

"No; I have my eye on another person. Someone who I think could be the one for me. Speaking of which, has the team arrived in the PLANTs?" asked Nichos, trapping Obali's king.

"Yes; they are ready to grab her anytime as long as she stays in space" answered the Intelligence Chief, knowing that he now lost the game.

"Good; once we capture her, Gil should find it more difficult to sway his people" stated the Director with a smile. He made one last move and then looked up at his companion.

"Checkmate"

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Nova looked up at the ship she would soon be serving on. The blond was actually impressed by what she saw which surmised her. She wasn't easily impressed about anything.

When she arrived, Nova was somewhat surprised at the changes Heavens Base had undergone since her last visit when she was still with Stellar. The defensive network was bigger and the number of hangers had increased as well.

"Nova?" asked a startled voice from behind her. Nova turned and saw the familiar face of Sting Oakley.

"Hello Sting" greeted the blond in a neutral tone. She was surprised to see him still alive and was not sure how to act.

"I though you were dead. Stellar cried for months after what happened" said the Extended with a frown. Both he and Auel had tried to comfort their teammate but with no avail.

"I was saved by friends of Director Ayanami. I and my Gundam have been assigned to the Seraphim" stated Nova, softening her voice. She liked Sting and thought of him as a brother when she and Stellar were in the lab with him.

"I am guessing you are the fourth member of our team" said Sting with a grin.

"Who are the other two? Are they Extended?" asked Nova. Fllay had received very little info on her teammates.

"No; they are from Phantom Pain though. Their names are Sven Cal Bayan and Shams Couza" informed the green-haired young man.

"I see; I heard about Auel, my condolences" said Nova with a sad frown.

"Mine as well in regards to Stellar" said Sting with a sad smile.

"Stellar is still alive" stated Nova. Sting's mouth gaped in surprise.

"I was told that she is dead. How is she?" asked the Extended with concern

"She is in a coma; I have hopes that she will awaken" said the blond with hope in her voice.

"I hope so as well" said Sting as he watched Sven and Shams walk up to them.

Nova examined her new teammates and wasn't sure what to think. The blond had no doubts about their abilities since they were in Phantom Pain. After they introduced themselves, Sting and Shams chatted about their Gundams while Sven talked with her.

"I have heard from my Commanders that you wish to engage Destiny" said Sven, looking at her. Nova found his silver hair and purple eyes sort reminded her of a Coordinator. However, it was his cold demeanor that threw her off.

"Yes I do. Will this be a problem?" asked the Extended in a neutral tone.

"No; I will be in command of the team though and expect you to obey me on the battlefield" stated the young man.

"As long as you don't interfere with my engagement with Destiny, you can count on me" said Nova. Sven nodded.

"I am curious to see how this planet defenser system works on your Gundam" said the silver-haired pilot.

Nova nodded but did not say anything. The system was designed to enhance the Neo Strike's defensive capabilities on the battlefield. Nova knew it would be useful for her coming battle with Destiny.

"The Captain is calling for a meeting at 0800 tomorrow morning; make sure you're there" announced Sven to the trio before walked away. Shams ran to catch up after saying his goodbyes to the Extended.

"Do you want me to show you where you are staying?" asked Sting with a smile. Nova nodded and they began walking.

"You seem different that I last saw you" commented Nova. He was acting differently than a normal Extended.

"Director Ayanami's doing; the doctors are trying to make me normal but with my enhancements intact. I actually feel better" informed Sting.

Nova nodded and stayed silent as Sting informed her of what was exactly done to him. From what she was told by Fllay, a similar procedure was planned for her sister once she had awakened from her coma. Seeing its effects on Sting reassured her about the procedure.

As they entered the ship, Nova was shown to her quarters. She was fortunate to have a room to herself and would enjoy the privacy. Nova hated sharing anything with anyone with the exception of her sister.

Nova just hated how Stellar never cleaned out her hair from the shower drain.

…………………………………………………………………………………………

_South America_

Sai Argyle wiped the sweat off of him for the sixth time as he motioned for the crane on where to drop the steel beam.

Even after all the time he had spent in the Amazon Jungle, the young man still wasn't quite used to the South American heat. At least the sun block lotion was helping him in the case of sunburns.

The construction was going well at least. Sai was surprised that not only was there no hindrances to the project, but that ZAFT had yet to detect the activity at all. Most of the work was done underground though and the surface work was done deep in the jungle.

The engineers that Nichos promised had arrived on time, which Sai was glad of. Constructing tarmacs under rivers was going to be a pain and he needed all the help he could get.

He had received a message from Fllay during the last supply drop. It was a congratulations on his recent engagement to his fiancée Marcella Mayor, who was directing the underground construction. It was stated that she was happy for her friend and was looking forward to the wedding.

There was also recent intelligence on the activities of ZAFT as well.

According to the report, it was predicted that war would break out within the next two months. Sai was to keep focused on the construction and that help would arrive if he needed it. He was also given more funds as well.

Sai knew the heavy responsibility that the organization had laid on his shoulders. The construction project was one of the key components of the Unification Initiative and he would make sure it was ready when everything came together.

Taking his water bottle from his pocket, Sai chugged it. It was almost empty and the young man knew that he needed to take a break soon. He had been working for almost seven hours straight and needed a moment to relax.

Sai knew he would have plenty of it tonight. The construction crew had planned a party to celebrate his and Marcella's engagement. The crew had become close over the past months and considered themselves family. They were also strong believers in Sai and his Organization's plans.

Deciding that it was a good time to see Marcella, Sai waved to the crane operator to take a break. Walking away from the machine, he headed to a large cave that was nearby. It served as an entryway to the underground.

Sai smiled at the idea of Marcella's sweaty body. He was looking forward now more than ever at seeing her. She would call him a dog and laugh.

Fllay would call him a pervert and glare.

Author's Note: I hope I did not make Sting too OOC. It has been some time since I have seen GSD. I also tried to make Sven and Shams IC as well. My apologies if I screwed that up.

The AthrunxHerem might be out. It is still up to you readers but I will say that the pairing for him is still up in the air.

I hope I caught your interest on the _Bismarck_-class Battleship. I will have more detailed specs down the line. It won't be invincible but will still outclass anything ZAFT or Orb has and it will also have weaknesses as well.

The Neo Strike's Planet Defenser system is from Gundam Wing. I was impressed by its performance in the series and decided to use it for Nova's Gundam.

The next chapter will be up after I have updated "Ghosts", which should be up within the next eight days. I am also trying to update one of my Eva fics as well.

The next chapter will begin the stage for the renewed war between the Earth Alliance and ZAFT. It will also feature Athrun and place him in a more commanding role in ZAFT.

Please R&R


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: still don't own Gundam Seed Destiny or any other elements from other material.

Lunamaria tried to hide her nervousness as she walked into the conference room with Athrun at her side.

Dressed in formal whites than her old ZAFT elite pilot uniform, she felt odd and out of place. When she was first presented with the uniform, Lunamaria was surprised on how comfortable the clothing was. The skirt was certainly longer than what she normally wore.

Inside the room were a great many of ZAFT's top brass. Lunamaria had never seen so many Admirals and Commanders before and was not sure how to act around them. She saw that Chairman Durandal was talking to a pair of Commanders along with Captain Gladys.

The Minerva had arrived at Armory One just this morning. During the flight from Earth, Lunamaria had undergone her training in her new position. She was still getting used to being saluted.

Most of the training exercises that she and Athrun planned had gone smoothly. Lunamaria was handling Impulse well and she believed that she was ready to use it in battle. The only aggravating thing she had to deal with is Shinn's attitude. He was more arrogant than ever and there were a few times that he refused her orders. Lunamaria knew it was only a matter of time before she would have to reprimand him.

"Nervous?" asked Athrun, turning his head to smile at the girl. Lunamaria nodded and he laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Just remember what I said and you will do fine" said Commander Zala. The Sub-Commander nodded and the two took their seats once Durandal signal for the meeting to begin. The room darkened and a four-way screen lowered in the middle of the room.

Commander Benett, head of naval intelligence, rose from his chair. Catching everyone's attention, he began to speak. Tall with silver hair and blue eyes, he had served as head of naval intelligence when Patrick Zala was Chairman. It was also rumored that Commander Benett had been one of Zala's supporters and detested Naturals.

"Three days ago, our agents in the Earth Alliance's High Command informed us that Daedalus Lunar Base has acquired a large stockpile of nuclear weapons. As you all know, Daedalus is under the complete control of the Blue Cosmos and has become their headquarters in space" informed the man.

"Do they plan to use them?" asked a ZAFT Commander that Athrun did not recognize. There were more than a few officers present that Athrun knew and had met before. However there were also a lot of newly promoted officers as well and Athrun wondered if they had received their promotions by Gilbert in order for him to have more support in ZAFT.

"We believe that they will; we must not allow that to happen" said Benett in a firm tone.

"What do you mean?" asked another ZAFT Commander.

"That we must take military action against Daedalus while there is still time" stated Gilbert Durandal. His words surprised most of the assembled. Athrun narrowed his eyes but stayed silent.

"Is that wise? By attacking Daedalus, we will be committing open war with the Alliance" said Commander Marco Amalfi. He was Yuri Amalfi's younger brother and a close supporter of Siegel Clyne's ideals.

"Our aim is not to destroy the base but rather to take control of it. Once the Lunar Base is in our hands, we can expose the Blue Cosmos weapons to the rest of the Earth Sphere. The Alliance will have to back down" stated Gilbert.

Athrun had to agree with the Chairman. Though attacking Daedalus base did not sit well with him, he could not deny that initiating a first strike would be the smartest course of action. By attacking first, they would deny the Blue Cosmos the opportunity to use the weapons against the PLANTs.

"Why should we worry about the Blue Cosmos having nuclear weapons anyways? As long as we have the Neutron Stampedar, the PLANTs are safe" stated a ZAFT Admiral. A few of the assembled nodded at the man's words.

"Not if the Blue Cosmos use a different type of delivery system. We caught the Alliance by surprise the last time. It won't work a second time" said Commander Sark, a supporter of Gilbert Durandal.

"When is this attack supposed to be carried out?" asked Athrun suddenly, ending the argument.

"In two weeks; astronomers are predicting a medium size solar flare that will occur and will disrupt radar and communications around the moon. We will use this blackout to commence our operation so that Daedalus cannot receive reinforcements from any of the other Lunar Bases" answered Commander Benett.

"The Alliance will notice the fleet build up; what do you plan to tell them?" asked Amalfi, curious.

"That we are conducting a fleet exercise" informed Admiral Sai, sitting Gilbert's left. Amalfi nodded, satisfied by the answer.

"Formal preparations will commence tomorrow. Until then, everything that has been said is highly classified and is not to be repeated outside this room. Dismissed" said Durandal.

All the officers present stood and saluted the man as he left, Captain Gladys at his side. The large contingent of military brass then separated into small groups to discuss the upcoming attack.

As Athrun and Lunamaria turned to leave, Commander Almafi walked up to them with another Commander at his side.

"It is good to see you again Athrun; how long has it been?" greeted the man.

"About four year's sir; when you attended the graduation ceremony at the academy" answered Commander Zala, shaking the man's hand.

"This is Commander Shinji Hahnenfuss; a close friend of mine" said Marco, introducing his companion. Athrun shook his hand as well.

"This is my second-in command, Lunamaria Hawk" said Athrun. Luna just smiled and nodded at the men.

"How do you like commanding your own team?" asked Commander Amalfi with curiosity.

"It has its high and low points" answered Athrun with a smile.

"That is understandable; your first team is always the most difficult. From what I have been hearing, you have been doing well" said Marco.

"Thank you; I am trying my best" said the young man.

"What do you think about the coming attack?" asked Commander Hahnenfuss. The man was only a few years older than Athrun and had long dark hair.

"I don't know what to think; I was hoping the peace would last" answered Commander Zala truthfully.

"If everything goes according to plan, the peace may last" stated Amalfi.

"Maybe; the Blue Cosmos are a threat to the PLANTs" admitted Athrun with a frown.

"But you have your doubts" stated Shinji with an eyebrow raised.

"Yes" said Athrun. Luna turned to look at her Commander in surprise.

"I also have my doubts; both to the attack itself and the validity of Commander Benett's information. He is one of the strongest proponents for the war in ZAFT" informed Commander Amalfi.

"He is?" asked Luna, stunned by the statement.

"Oh yes; he opposed the present ceasefire and wanted to launch an invasion of the Atlantic Federation homeland" informed Marco.

"That is not good" stated blue-haired man with a deeper frown.

"I agree; I hope this plan of capturing Daedalus is truly a plan to seize the facility instead of destroying it; if it isn't, then we will have a full fledge war on our hands" said Hahnenfuss. Athrun nodded his head in agreement along with Luna.

"Well it was good talking to you sir; I have to get back to the Minerva and make preparations" said Athrun.

"It was good talking to you as well; see you tomorrow" said Marco. Athrun and Luna then took their leave.

"So what do you think?" asked Amalfi to his companion, making sure there was no one in earshot.

"Definitely not in Durandal's camp" stated the young man.

"That is good; more and more ZAFT Commanders are aligning themselves with the Chairman. Soon, he'll have the power to usurp the Council and take complete control" said Marco.

His companion nodded and hoped that his father was right about having Yzak Joule on the Council as a benefit to them. If he was wrong, then the backlash would be catastrophic.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

"They actually bought it" stated a surprised Fllay Allster as she read the communiqué she just received from Heavens Base.

She was in her wheelchair out in the garden of her mansion, which was located on a small island in Indonesia area of the Equitorial Union. It was a private island, owned and operated by the organization she belonged to. At her side was a woman who was tall with long green hair and gray eyes.

Just ten feet in front of her was her twin daughters, Felicia and Via, who were playing in the dirt. The three year olds were making mud pies and were not paying attention to her mother or the woman next to her.

"What do you mean Ma'am?" asked Seras Akumo, a longtime servant of the Allster family. She had worked for Fllay's mother and father for years as had the rest of her family before they were killed during the attack by ZAFT on Panama during the first war. She also acted as a loyal bodyguard to Fllay and her daughters.

"Nichos's ruse; ZAFT actually bought it" said the red-head with a laugh. Fllay truly did not think it would work.

"When does he expect ZAFT to attack?" asked Seras. When it came to her mistress's plans and goals, she was always in the loop.

"In a couple of weeks during a projected solar flare" answered Fllay. She watched her daughters with a smile.

The young girls looked more like their father than her. Both had brown hair and purple eyes. Felicia's hair was long while her sister's was short. The girls also had a knack for computers and building machines with their hands. Luckily for Fllay, the two had yet to inquire about their father since the red-head was not sure what to tell them.

"Should I start making preparations for our move to a more secure location?" asked the attendant. While their present location was well protected, there were other more sheltered areas in the Equatorial Union.

"Yes, I suppose so. Once the retaliation is done, I'll need to deal with the fallout in Jakarta so I want the children safe while I am gone" said Fllay with small frown. She hated being away from the children.

"Understood; I'll make the preparations" and with that said, Seras turned and left the family alone in the garden.

Fllay continued reading the intelligence report. The amount of firepower that ZAFT was going to use would definitely overrun Daedalus, even though the base had three Destroys in its arsenal. However, she knew that the Blue Cosmos had a secret weapon at the base which would catch ZAFT by surprise.

As she wheeled herself towards her daughters, Fllay knew that she had to send her latest intelligence report to Nichos.

Their partner in Orb had reported that Athha had four _Eternal_-class ships under construction as well as assembly lines producing Doms. This would increase the size and firepower to their already string orbital fleet. Orb was also increasing the size of their naval fleet and would be up to prewar size in about a month.

Fllay and Nichos actually found Orb's military production comforting. In the off chance that they lost the war, Durandal would have to face a very powerful Orb in order to initiate his Destiny Plan. He would lose because ZAFT would be bled dry from defeating Alliance.

The thought of Gilbert Durandal and ZAFT getting their asses kicked brought a smile to Fllay.

Everything was also going well on her end in the Equatorial Union. The increase in the nation's military was going smooth and her influence in the Government was solid. The construction of the nations MS Methuss was on schedule. Everything would be ready when she was prepared move with her partners.

The Unification Initiative was proceeding.

Author's Note: Here is chapter 7 and I hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will be the longest chapter yet because it will display a major battle. It will also be my first time writing MS combat.

I am still not sure what to do with Athrun and his pairing, so do not assume that just because he is a little friendly with Luna and Meyrin, that he will be paired with them. I am still unsure whether to give him a harem.

As for Kira, Fllay, and Lacus- It won't be quite a harem, but all three will be together at the end of the fic.

Please R&R


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed or GS Destiny

It was quiet

It was well known that in space, no one could hear you scream. So when the forty-eight ships of ZAFT's heavy assault fleet moved through space, they made no noise.

The fleet was comprised of the _Gondwana_, _Minerva_; her sister ships the _Ceres _and the _Diana_, twenty-five Laurasias, and nineteen Nazcas. There were also over 250 mobile suits in the fleet as well.

It was one of the largest gathering of ZAFT ships since the beginning of the war. The amount of firepower was enough to take on any Earth Alliance fleet that found itself unfortunate to cross paths with it.

When the fleet first gathered at Armory One, the commanders of the various EA bases on the moon were nervous. When it became public knowledge that ZAFT was holding a fleet exercise, things calmed down slightly and all major EA lunar bases stood down from alert. However, Arzachel Base still monitored the fleet.

Meyrin Hawk sat at her station, trying to ignore the growing tension in the bridge. She was one of the few who knew the real purpose of the assembled fleet. However, she had promised her sister that she would not say anything.

She was still recovering from the shock of the coming attack. Meyrin remembered her father's declaration that ZAFT would never make first strikes. He was a former ZAFT Commander and was now retired.

Solar flare activity was starting to rise and Meyrin knew that the order to move was going to be soon. All they were waiting for was the interference of the Alliance's scanners on the move. Everything hinged on surprise.

A sudden movement caught Meyrin's attention and she turned to see Captain Gladys enter the bridge. Her face was solemn and the red-head knew that the woman was on edge from the coming attack.

From what Luna told her, the defenses of Daedalus was not completely known. All the information that ZAFT had was outdated from the time when Djibril was running the Earth Alliance. The PLANTs knew that the EA had reinforced the defensive structures of their Lunar Bases, but it was still unknown how much.

There was also the factor of the unconfirmed Requiem cannon at Daedalus. All intelligence pointed that construction stopped when Djibril died and it was unknown whether it ever resumed. For some reason, no reconnaissance photos could ever be obtained.

Meyrin was in fear for her sister's and Athrun's safety. Though the Minerva was in harms way, Athrun and Luna was more so. Both would be on the front lines of the attack with Luna leading the team in attacking the base directly while Athrun escorted the infiltration unit to capture Daedalus's nuclear arsenal and Command Center.

A light blinked on Meyrin's console and the girl activated it which brought Athrun up on her main screen.

"Is there something you need Commander?" asked Meyrin. She decided to be formal given the situation.

"Actually yes; I need a personal favor and you are the only one I trust" said Athrun, keeping his voice quiet enough so that only she could hear.

"Of course; what ever you need" said the girl, keeping her voice steady. Meyrin was both surprised and giddy at the same time. She felt happy that he had come to her directly for help.

"When you have the opportunity, is there any chance that you could hack into Daedalus's database?" asked the ZAFT Commander. Meyrin was taken aback by the question and had to think about it for a minute.

"I could try once we are in range; it would probably be a good idea when there is enough distraction for me to hack their network. Is this part of the mission parameter?" asked the CIC officer, puzzled.

"No, this just between you and me; there is something bothering me about this whole mission and I would feel more comfortable if I knew what I was heading into" answered Athrun with a frown.

"I understand; you can count on me!" stated Meyrin with a reassuring smile.

"Thanks Meyrin; if we get through this in one piece, I'll treat you to dinner" said the young man with a smile before the screen went blank.

Meyrin felt absolute joy at the man's words. Though a small part of her knew that it was probably just a friendly dinner, the fact that she was having dinner with Athrun Zala was enough for her not to care.

She couldn't wait to tell Lunamaria.

……………………………………………………………………………………..

President Copeland fought the urge to yawn as he was escorted to Daedalus's Command Center. The commanding officer of the base, Admiral Levi Weimer, was informing him of the various upgrades to the defenses of the base and the Atlantic Federation President only half listened to him.

The trip had been a long one and Copeland disliked every bit of it. Not only was he not a fan of space travel but the fact that he was stuck with most of his cabinet was also aggravating as well. He only picked most of them out of necessity and disliked every one of them. They were also all card carrying members of the Blue Cosmos as well.

The only reason he was at Daedalus was on Director Ayanami's suggestion. He had asked Copeland to go to Daedalus to bring the Blue Cosmos to heel. Just about all the members at Daedalus were soldiers of the Atlantic Federation and Director Ayanami felt that Copeland had a better chance of talking to them than him.

For the life of him, he could not see why.

His membership in the organization was political than philosophical. It was the only way he could become President over his rivals in the Assembly. He was already at odds with the organization over the incident with Djibril as well as his decision to place a Coordinator on his cabinet. Luckily he decided not to bring Minister Rice with him or all hell would have broke loose the minute they stepped off the shuttle.

……………………………………………………………………………………………...

"Sir, solar flare activity is at its peak" said a ZAFT officer at his station.

Commander Benett smiled as he watched Admiral Yufi give the order for the fleet to move out. He watched as all forty-eight ships of the assault fleet begin to move towards their target. The Alliance would never see them coming.

He and the rest of the top brass of the operation were currently on the Gondwana, which would serve as the flagship of the fleet. The massive carrier would be staying at the rear as the rest of the fleet engaged Daedalus's defenses.

He was a little irked that Commander Zala was leading the infiltration team. Benett disliked the young man immensely and considered him a traitor to ZAFT. He never forgot how Athrun had fought against ZAFT in the last war as well as the fact that he caused the destruction of Genesis.

Once the operation was completed and Benett's position as head of Naval Intelligence was solidified, he vowed that he would have Athrun Zala taken care of. Accidents always happened when you are a mobile suit pilot.

As they neared the moon, the fleet began launching their mobile suits. Scores of Zaku Warriors and Goufs emerged into space as well as the fleet's Gundams. Impulse lead the other two Gundams and they were followed by the Minerva's compliment of mobile suits.

It was rather a spectacular sight to Benett. The sheer amount of firepower would sweep away any defense the pathetic Naturals could muster, the ZAFT Commander was quite sure of.

Commander Benett knew that the capture of Daedalus was just the beginning. Once the beachhead was secure and the propaganda the captured nukes would provide, it was only matter of time before the rest of the moon fell to ZAFT's hands.

Space belonged to the future of Humanity; not the feeble Naturals.

……………………………………………………………………………………….

"Are you sure you can't pick up anything?" asked Lieutenant Samuels from his seat.

"No sir; it looks like the solar flare is interfering with our sensors" informed Ensign Maywhether as she stare at her console.

The two were currently located in a small observation center just three miles from the defense perimeter of Daedalus. It was a rather new building and one of the many recent additions to Director Ayanami's enhancements to all the Lunar Bases defenses. It was only small enough for two people and was fairly concealed on the lunar surface.

"What about communications?" asked the senior officer, looking out the window. The entire top half of the dome was transparent on the inside, allowing anyone to look out into space.

"Limited; I can reach Daedalus with some difficulty but anywhere else would take some time" answered the woman.

Reaching for his water bottle, the Lieutenant took a drink as he watched the stars. He had been stationed at the outpost of over a month now and found the job very boring. His partner, the Ensign actually liked the position and told him she would not be pursuing a transfer if the opportunity arose.

As he was about to take a second drink, a sudden movement caught his eye. Taking out his pair of binoculars, his lucky charm from Earth, he scanned the area above him.

"I see ZAFT Mobile Suits" said the man loudly. The woman next to him looked at him in surprise and then looked up herself. She spotted the Zakus and Goufs as they passed over them.

"What are they doing on the Moon?" asked the confused Ensign.

"I have no clue, but it looks like they are heading for Daedalus; contact them immediately and let them know what's coming. After that, try to contact the closest base and let them know to spread the word" ordered Samuels in a serious tone of voice as he counted the number of suits that flew overhead.

"Yes sir" said the woman, putting on her headset.

So far, they had yet to be seen and Lieutenant Samuels was not sure if it would last. They had no weapons at the post and would be defenseless if the enemy spotted them. However, the observation post was designed for concealment.

He was praying that the engineers got it right this time.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

President Copeland looked up in alarm as a loud siren blared through the speakers. He was currently seated at the conference table with the rest of his cabinet, enjoying lunch. The food was not as bad as he thought it was going to be; the steak seemed real enough and the mashed potatoes were not boxed.

"What's going on?" asked Minister Rice, rising from his seat. The other ministers rose as well.

Admiral Weimer walked over to the small console next to the door. A female officer's face appeared on the small monitor. His face turned to surprise as the woman spoke in a low voice. Neither Copeland nor his cabinet could hear the conversation. After the conversation ended, the monitor went black and Weimer turned to the group.

"It seems that we are under attack by ZAFT" stated the EA officer grimly.

"What?!" yelled an outraged Minister. Copeland sat down in shock.

"I have to head to the Command Center; I will have all of you escorted to your shuttle" said Weimer, ignoring the Minister. Before anyone could get a word out, the Admiral left.

As the group of VIPs was escorted out of the room by a small squad of soldiers, the alarm continued blazing. Groups of pilots hurried past the assemblage and officers made their way to their assigned stations.

Copeland moved to the side of Minister Rice and spoke in a low voice that only the Defense Minister could hear.

"Do you think this base can hold?" asked the nervous President.

"Of course; those Coordinator scum are no match for the defenses of Daedalus" answered Rice with evil grin.

"Then why are we being led back to the shuttle?" asked Copeland. If Daedalus's defenses were that good, why were they running?

Minister Rice turned to glare at the President and Copeland looked away in fear. He prayed that the shuttle and its escort could get them out of this alive.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The ZAFT fleet knew that its precious element of surprise was lost the minute beam cannon fire and missiles erupted from the surface of the moon. Most of the enemy fire had missed the fleet. However, some fire found their targets thus a Nazca and two Laurasias were destroyed outright.

Still Commander Benett ordered the attack to continue and ZAFT Mobile Suits launched from the fleet.

Zakus, Goufs, and GINNs roared out of their respective ships onto the battlefield. They met a hail of anti-air from Daedalus Base as well as enemy MS. The ZAFT suits clashed with Windams while dodging the enemy fire from the lunar surface.

Lunamaria slashed through an enemy Windam as the Gouf next to her was hit by a missile and exploded. Taking out her beam rifle, she fired at the surface missile launched and watched it explode. Her victory was short lived as she dodged a beam shot from a Windam.

The enemy MS flew at her, slashing wildly and Impulse countered the beam saber with her own. Banging her shield into the torso of the Windam, it was stunned long enough for Impulse to slash at a downward angle. The Windam was cut nearly in half and exploded.

The Minerva exchanged fire with a Nelson-class battleship. The EA fleet that was stationed at Daedalus was starting to emerge from the lunar surface and engage the ZAFT fleet.

Dodging the Nelson's beam cannons, the Minerva fired its Tristans and the blasts tore through the enemy ship. The enemy ship was still active and missiles erupted from the Nelson. Most of the Minerva's CIWSs intercepted the enemy rockets, but a few made it through and slammed into the ZAFT ship. The Minerva returned fire with its own missiles and the projectiles slammed into the EA ship, causing it to explode.

"Captain; the Diana is reporting that they are being swarmed by three enemy ships and is calling for assistance" informed Meyrin loudly from her station. The Minerva's sister ship was brought on screen and it was indeed being swarmed by a Drake and two more Nelsons.

"Helm, take us to her; Meyrin, have the closest ship accompany us" ordered Captain Gladys.

"Yes ma'am" said Meyrin, putting the call through. As the Minerva moved to support the Diana, a Nazca joined the ship as well as a group of Zakus.

Destiny flew at the Drake, anti-ship sword in hand. Moving past the anti-air, Shinn got close to the bridge of the ship and thrust the blade into the bridge. With its bridge destroyed, the EA battleship began to lose orbit and crashed into the Moon.

Taking out his beam rifle, Destiny fired at the squadron of mobile armors coming at him. One of the shots hit an Exus, destroying it and causing the others to separate. Shinn kept firing at one of the groups, taking out another two.

Legend fired used its DRAGOONs to take out two Windams that attempted to come at him from above. A third Windam tried to ambush him from below as Rey retracted his DRAGOONS. Sensing the coming attack, Rey aimed his beam rifle downwards and fired. The shot ripped through the Windam's head and body, causing the suit to explode.

The Laurasia exploded as Dearka and Shiho arrived with a squad of suits to support it. The ZAFT ship was hit by surface fire which seemed to be intensifying. Another Laurasia was hit and Shiho lead her squad at the ground based beam cannons.

The enemy turret was supported by a thick anti-air screen and missiles flew at the ZAFT suits. The collection of Goufs, Zakus, and GINNs used their beam rifles to intercept the missile barrage. Most of the projectiles were taken out, but a few made it through and two Zakus were it. One Zaku was destroyed outright while the other crashed into the lunar surface, killing the pilot.

The ZAFT mobile suits fired on both the large turret and rocket launchers. While the launchers were destroyed by the beam fire, the turret was more heavily armored and withstood the ZAFT fire.

The large beam turret fired at the suits and missed them as the ZAFT MS dodged the shot. Before it could fire again, Shiho maneuvered her Gouf at the turret and used her beam saber. She slashed through the turret and flew back as the cannon exploded.

"Shiho, look out!" yelled Dearka as he used his GINN to push Shiho's Gouf out of the way. A beam shot just missed them both and Shiho looked up to see a group of enemy MS and MAs fly at them. A Gouf and GINN were lost before Shiho's squad regrouped.

The two groups of MS clashed and suits from either side exploded in space. Dearka slashed at a Windam, slicing of the MS's right arm. The exploding arm caused the Windam to be pushed back and Dearka swung again, slicing off the Windam's legs. Losing altitude, the enemy MS fell onto the lunar surface not far from the wreckage of the Zaku.

The pilot however survived the fall did his best to escape the battlefield. He was fortunate to go unnoticed and he used his remaining arm pull himself away from the battle site. However, the pilot's sense of direction was bad and he was unknowingly moving away from Daedalus; an act that would later save his life.

When the last of the enemy suits was destroyed, Commander Shiho Hahnenfuss let out a sigh. She had just lost pilots, two form her own team. Shiho wondered if Commander Joule could done better if he was in command instead of her.

"You shouldn't beat yourself up about it; you did the best you could" said Dearka as if he were reading her mind.

"You think so?" asked Shiho, not sure if he was right.

"Yeah; Yzak would say the same thing" stated blond pilot.

"He would wouldn't he" said the ZAFT Commander with a small smile.

"Yep; see what happens when you two start sharing the same bed? You get past his outward attitude and see what guy he is" said Dearka with a smirk.

Before Shiho could even respond, the GINN flew off to battle. A very red-faced Shiho flew after him, followed by the rest of the ZAFT suits. She wasn't sure what was more surprising, Dearka knowing about the relationship or that his statement that unfortunately was heard throughout the squad.

Shiho did know that given the chance, she would smack the blond upside the head.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Sir; the second defense line has been breached!" yelled an EA ensign from his terminal.

Admiral Weimer clenched his right hand in anger. The third defense line was their final line of defense. If ZAFT breached it then it was all over and Weimer would have no choice to activate IT.

"Launch the Destroys!"

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Lunamaria was about to give an order to Shinn and Rey when the Nazca she was supposed to be supporting was his by a massive beam cannon. The ship erupted into flames and then exploded, sending shrapnel everywhere.

Moving past the wreckage, Luna stared in horror as she watched three Destroy Gundams emerge from Daedalus. They were currently still on the surface of the moon and their black armor did little to conceal them. The memories of Berlin surfaced as all three large Gundams changed into their attack mode.

Beam fire erupted from the surface and two more ZAFT ships were taken down. The ZAFT mobile suits were able to dodge the enemy fire and about five Zakus charged the colossal MS, hoping to get in close to use their beam tomahawks. Unfortunately, the Destroys weren't alone.

Emerging from one of the surface hangers, seven Gells-Ghes moved to support the Destroys and fired on the Zakus. The ZAFT suits were caught by surprise and all five were torn apart by the flux of beam fire.

As Luna tried to come up with a plan to deal with the new threat, she hoped that Athrun was having an easier time with his mission.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

Athrun's Gouf hugged the surface of the moon, barely scratching the surface with his feet. In the Gouf's hands was a large metal cylinder that held a ZAFT commando team made up of fourteen men and woman. They were pretty cramped inside and container and the ZAFT commander wondered what was promised to them for even volunteering for the mission.

Athrun followed the progress of the battle through the communications link. It seemed that Daedalus's defenses were stronger than ZAFT Command thought. The presence of the three Destroys made things a lot bloodier than what was happening so far. He hoped Luna and everyone would be okay.

As he approached Daedalus Bases blind spot, Athrun tensed up and went on the alert. Though Benett had assured him that the Alliance had yet to plug up the hole in their defenses, Athrun still made sure to look out in case of an ambush.

While he was holding the cylinder, his combat strength was greatly reduced. If enemy MS happen to get a lucky shot in, then the entire commando team would be lost.

As he neared his objective, Athrun slowed down. His destination was a gap in Daedalus's defense and radar grid. The gap was small enough for a single mobile suit to get through without being detected. Once through, he was to proceed to a small unused hanger which lay on the opposite side from where the battle was taking place.

Passing through the gap, everything seemed to go well so far. He could see the doors to the hanger and they were unguarded as was expected. Stopping in front of them, Athrun put down the cylinder and pulled out a large blade that he had been given for the mission.

Jamming the blade in the crack where the two hanger doors meet, Athrun attempted to wedge open the hanger doors. Blowing through the doors would alert the enemy so he had to be careful on how he was to get into the base. Once the doors were wide enough, Athrun used his Gouf to open the door enough for him to get inside with the cylinder. Once he was inside, he closed the doors behind him.

The hanger was empty and appeared to not have been used for a very long time. There was no atmosphere inside and there was very little gravity. On the opposite side of the hanger doors to the outside, a smaller set of doors was seen and was the entrance to the inside of Daedalus.

Putting the cylinder back down, Athrun watched as a small panel opened up and the commando team start to exit. They were all wearing a type of spacesuit that was designed for this kind of mission; allowing for non-atmosphere infiltration but not bulky to be a hindrance.

Athrun was wearing a similar suit himself though he was to stay with his Gouf. Just in case something went wrong, he was to get the team out fast.

As the commandos approached the smaller doors, one of the team members accessed the control panel next to the entrance. Hacking into the console, the doors opened up without the alarm going off. As the rest of the team moved in, the leader held up a thumbs-up to Athrun, who then returned the gesture with his Gouf.

Everything seemed to be going smoothly so far.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Admiral Walter Sutherland, brother to the late Admiral William Sutherland, gritted his teeth as his Core Booster Fighter flew above the surface of the moon.

Though he was happy to finally to get into the cockpit of a fighter after so many years, he was slightly on edge. He was one of thirteen other Core Boosters that flew ahead of the fleet that he commanded.

His fleet was made up of an Agamemnon, three Drakes, and two Nelsons which were assigned to patrol the area between the Galileo and Tranquility Lunar Bases. His fleet was one of the first to receive the message of ZAFT's attack on Daedalus and Sutherland ordered the flotilla to head straight for Daedalus.

Assigned to the fleet was a squadron of the new FF-X7 Core Boosters. Being a former fighter pilot himself, the fighter reminded him of the old photos of aircraft from the 21st century AD. Ignoring the protests from his XO, Walter headed out with the other pilots ahead of the fleet. The usual pilot was incapacitated due to appendicitis so Sutherland did not feel too bad about taking his fighter.

"Admiral; we have a message from Arzachel" informed Captain Bartlett, Sutherland's XO, over the communications line.

"What is it?" asked Walter as he and the other fighters increased their throttle. Normally the Core Booster could travel faster, but each fighter was weighted down by the single anti-ship missile that they carried. The missile itself was quite large and was loaded with a powerful explosive which was known to only a select few. Unfortunately, Sutherland lacked the rank to know what he was carrying.

"Apparently, there is a small ZAFT fleet heading to reinforce the forces attacking Daedalus. We have been ordered to have the Core Boosters intercept and destroy the enemy fleet" said Bartlett.

"Very well; send us the coordinates and we'll adjust our course. Have the fleet proceed to Daedalus as planned" ordered the EA Admiral. As the coordinates were received, the squadron adjusted their course.

"I didn't tell them about where you are" said the EA Captain softly.

"Thanks Jeff; I owe you one" said Sutherland with a smile.

"The next round of drinks are on you sir" said Bartlett before he signed off.

Leaning back in his seat, Sutherland recalled the last conversation between himself and his late brother. The two were never on good terms so it was no surprise that their last conversation was more of an argument than anything else.

Walter had just found out that his brother was a member of the Blue Cosmos and went to his brother's house to confront him about it. Though Walter was not a fan of Coordinators or ZAFT, he felt that the extremist beliefs of the Blue Cosmos were a blight to the Atlantic Federation.

Unfortunately, William Sutherland disagreed and called Walter a coward and a fool. Walter took exception to that and the two nearly came to blows if William hadn't had him thrown out of his house. A month later, William died at Jachin Due.

There was times that Walter regretted not being able to patch things up with his brother and did his best to provide for the deceased brother's widow and children. It was fortunate that the two daughters were not members of the Blue Cosmos and were in medical school.

After a few minutes, Sutherland could make out the ZAFT fleet. Though it was small, it was a formidable force made up of four Nazcas and five Laurasias. Luckily, the enemy fleet had yet to pick them up on their scanners due to the solar flare so there were no mobile suits deployed.

"This is Admiral Sutherland to all units; pick your targets and make it count. We only have one each of these new missiles and I don't want to waste them. After that, swing around and pick off the survivors" ordered the EA officer.

As the fighters approached the ZAFT ships, they slowed down to prepare themselves for the coming kickback that was going to happen once their load was released. The fighters lined themselves up with the enemy ships due the fact that the missiles they carried had no guidance system.

Sensing the time was right, Sutherland and the rest of his fellow pilots launched the missiles at the ZAFT ships.

What Sutherland did not know was that the explosive content of the missile was nuclear. The nuclear explosion was small though so it was not able to take down a PLANT. The missile was designed to explode after penetrating a ship's hull; the explosion on the inside would make more likely for the target to be destroyed.

As all thirteen of the missiles hit the ZAFT ships, only twelve found their targets. One of the missiles missed and flew right past a Nazca. As part of the design, the lone missile self-detonated without the nuclear material going off.

Seven out of the nine ships exploded outright. The last two, both Laurasias, survived and were preparing to launch their mobile suits as the fighters flew past them. The two ZAFT ships were also firing their weapons at the Core Boosters as they turned to engage the warships. However, the EA fighters were too fast to be hit.

The Core Boosters lined up and fired their beam cannons. The shots hit their targets and one of the Luarasias lost power as their engines were hit. The ZAFT ship began to lose altitude and was falling into the lunar surface.

Two Zakus managed to get out of the other Laurasia before it was destroyed as the Core Boosters swarmed it like angry gnats. Sutherland just managed to avoid a slash from one of the ZAFT mobile suits as one of his beam shots tore a hole though the other Zaku's torso.

As the enemy suit exploded, its comrade was hit from three different directions.

Seeing that all the targets were destroyed, Sutherland ordered all fighters to resume their course for Daedalus. Though the loss of their payload would make the coming battle more difficult, Walter least had the satisfaction of knowing that ZAFT was denied some reinforcements.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

Commander Alex Claus, head of the ZAFT Commando team infiltrating Daedalus, held his breath he spotted a pair of EA personnel move past him and his team. Though they were not seen, it was apparent that they were nearing a more populated area of the huge lunar base. The EA personnel may have failed to see them, the Commando Team's black attire made them stick out like a sore thumb.

"How much farther?" asked Alex to a blond woman next to him.

"About another seventy meters that way" answered the woman while looking at the PDA in her hand. She pointed at the corridor on their right.

Nodding, Commander Claus led his team through the hallway that was thankfully empty. The sound of the battle could be heard and the ground slightly shook every few seconds.

Every member of the team was carrying a submachine gun in case they encountered enemy forces. Though they were equipped to handle the base's security, a long drawn conflict would be disastrous to them.

After a minute of traveling through the halls, Alex held up his hand for everyone to halt. Peering around the corner, he saw the entrance to Daedalus's nuclear storage room. It was at the end of the hallway and appeared to be unguarded. There was one security camera overhead which moved from left to right to the entrance doors and the hallway leading up to them.

Pulling a silencer out of his pocket, the ZAFT Commander twisted it on the end of his machine gun. Taking aim, Alex fired a single round which hit the camera. Sparks flew from it and the camera appeared to be disabled.

The team rushed forward quickly and those on the end took up guard positions around the entrance. The route they traveled to reach their destination was the only way to the target so it was an easy position to defend. However, it also meant that if they were discovered, the team would be cut off from escaping.

One of the team members began to hack the terminal next to the doors and after a minute, the doors opened. Alex and half the team made their way inside while rest of the commandos stayed outside to guard the entrance.

The ZAFT Commander's eyes widened at the sight in front of him.

There were no nuclear weapons of any sort and all there was in the base was plies of empty missiles that were scattered everywhere.

"Is this the right room?" asked Alex, clearly confused. Commander Benett had personally assured him that his target was where they were. The blond with the PDA began hacking the console on the far wall. Alex hoped she would have answers for him soon.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"This can't be right" stated Meyrin as she stared at the screen in front of her.

One would think that hacking Daedalus's mainframe from the outside while running CIC in the middle of a battle would be next to impossible. However, Meyrin excelled at accomplishing multiple tasks in front of her. It was one of the reasons why she graduated the academy with high marks.

When she got through firewalls and other security measures, Meyrin immediately began to look for anything relevant to Athrun's mission. At the moment, the Minerva was escorting a damaged Nazca from the battlefield so everything was calm for the moment. Meyrin knew about the battle with the Destroy Gundams and that as soon as the Minerva was done with its current task, they would go to support their mobile suits.

According to the information she pulled up, Daedalus didn't have any nuclear weapons at all. Their nuclear stockpile was used during the Alliances failed attack some time ago and the base hadn't received anymore at all. As she continued reading, something else caught her eye; there was a duty roster for today and the red-head's eyes widened.

"Athrun; are you there?!" asked Meyrin, her voice catching the attention of everyone on the bridge.

"What are you doing Meyrin?" asked Captain Gladys, rising from her seat and making her way to Meyrin's station. The younger Hawk sister ignored her and continued with her task.

"Meyrin? What is it?" asked Athrun, his voice just barely heard over the speakers.

"I have something that you need to know; there are no nuclear weapons at Daedalus at all" informed the girl. There were gasps all over the bridge and Taila's eyes widened at the statement.

"Are you sure?" asked the ZAFT Commander.

"Yes and there's more; apparently there hasn't been a nuclear weapons for some time now. There is also visiting VIPs as well" stated Meyrin.

"VIPs?" asked Arthur Trine from the background.

"Yeah; if I am reading this right, the Atlantic Federation President and his cabinet are at the base right now" said Meyrin.

None of members of the bridge could believe their ears. Athrun wondered if Benett somehow knew about this and suspected that the man deliberately wanted to start a war.

"Anything else?" asked Taila, leaning her head over Meyrin's shoulder. The red-head began typing faster, hoping for an answer.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

Luna watched as two more Goufs fell before the concentrated fire originating from the Destroys and Gell-Ghes.

Deciding that she needed to act before they were all killed, the Sub-Commander desperately tried to come up with a plan. Dodging a beam blast, Luna could only come up with a possible solution.

"This is Lunamaria; all Zakus and Goufs, concentrate your fire on the Gell-Ghes. Shinn, Rey, we're going for the Destroys" said Luna over the comm.

Seventeen mobile suits, complying with Impulse's order, opened fire at the surface. The Destroy's shields blocked the incoming fire but the Gell-Ghes were not immune to the beam fire. Explosions rocked the surface and the concentration of fire that the ZAFT MS had to deal with earlier started to lessen.

Taking the opportunity, all three Gundams flew quickly to the lunar surface.

Shinn Asuka had mixed feelings on his opponent as he circled the Destroy Gundam. A part of him felt uneasy about engaging the colossal MS, still remembering the incident from Berlin. He was still haunted by Stellar's death and Shinn could almost see her ghost in the Destroy.

Another part of him was angry that the EA was still using the monsters. He was also angry at the pilot for even using the huge Gundam after what happened in Berlin. To Shinn, the Destroy Gundam was nothing more than a tool for evil men and was needed to be removed from the universe.

Charging forward and armed with his anti-ship sword, Destiny swung at the monstrosity's left leg. Metal met metal and sparks were seen as the large sword tried to cut through the leg. Using its right leg, the Destroy Gundam kicked Destiny and the Gundam was hurled into a nearby crater. The sword was still embedded in the leg.

Regaining its composure, Destiny dodged a beam shot as the Destroy transformed. As the Gundam towered over him, Shinn pulled out his beam saber and stared at the chest area. He knew that was where to strike in order to bring the thing down, but he was hesitant about performing the action. It was the same move that Freedom used to kill Stellar.

The Destroy raised one of its beam rifles and aimed at Destiny. As the shot was fired, Shinn easily avoided being hit and circled around the suit to slash at its backside. The beam saber cut into one of the cannons mounted on the backside and caused a large explosion. The blast was strong enough to knock the huge Gundam forward and it fell face first into the ground.

Taking advantage of his enemy's downed state, Shinn renewed his assault on the left leg of the enemy suit. Grabbing the anti-ship sword still logged within the leg, Shinn once again cut forward. Destiny managed to finish slicing the left leg off and the Destroy went down again.

As the Destroy Gundam tried to use its arms to push itself up, Shinn used his beam saber to pierce the right arm through the wrist. There was an explosion and the Destroy fell for a third time. The explosion in its backside had knocked out its thrusters so it was down for good. Shinn congratulated himself at being so merciful; he felt that he had somehow redeemed himself in regards to Stellar.

Rey was far than merciful; using his DRAGOONs, beam shots riddled the Destroy from all directions. Though the shots were not powerful to pierce the armor, it provided enough distraction for Rey to get up close to the Destroy. Perfectly imitating Freedom, Legend's beam saber pierced through the chest of the enemy Gundam. The only difference was that Rey actually hit the pilot and was incinerated. As the cockpit exploded, Rey moved away and watched the enemy suit fall to the ground. There was a smirk on his face.

Lunamaria managed to take down Destroy with surprise ease. Apparently, the pilot was stupid enough not to switch modes once the Gundam got in too close. Sensing when the time was right, Luna fired her beam rifle right when the Destroys own beam cannons were about to fire. The chain reaction of the blast to the charged-up cannons was large enough to engulf the Destroy in a fiery death, throwing shrapnel everywhere.

Sighing in relief that it was over, Luna checked the condition of her forces. All seventeen Goufs and Zakus were unscathed and there was no damage to her fellow Gundams. It also appeared that the last line of defense for Daedalus had been breached, leaving a clear shot at the base itself.

Luna was about to order an all out assault when the ground started to shake below her.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

"How long before we launch?" asked Copeland as he stood on the bridge of the Girty Lue. The ship was being raised to the surface as well as the Windams that acted as the Presidential Guard.

"Soon; CIC is hoping to slip us out though one of the side hangers. Apparently ZAFT has beaten our Destroys and have effectively breached our last line of defense" said Captain Bento, anger in his voice.

Copeland looked at his colleagues, all of whom wore expressions of unease and fear. He knew that they all had to get away or they would be captured by ZAFT. If that happened, it would be disastrous for both the Earth Alliance and the Atlantic Federation.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Oh my God" gasped Meyrin in horror as she stared at the screen in front of her. Taila, curious, looked over the girl's shoulder and her eyes widened as she read the information.

"What is it?" asked Athrun concerned, hearing the younger Hawk sister's intake of breath.

"You have to get out of there Athrun; very quickly" stated Meyrin with some panic.

"I agree Commander; you and the team need to get out of there now" said Captain Gladys in agreement.

"What do you mean?" asked Commander Zala, clearly confused.

"If what I am reading is true, Daedalus has a new weapon to replace the Cyclops System" informed the young woman.

"Damn; I knew that this was a bad idea. Captain, contact Benett; tell him to have all forces get clear of the base. Also contact Lunamaria; inform her of the VIPs and the possibility of escaping ships. Tell her to let them escape; we already have one disaster, we don't need another" ordered Athrun.

"Understood Sir" said Taila as Athrun signed off.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Are the preparations complete?" asked Admiral Weimer as he stared at the approaching ZAFT forces.

The enemy mobile suits and warships were now directly overhead and currently engaging the Windams that were left. Though outnumbered, the Blue Cosmos pilots fought savagely and brutally. Damaged Windams rammed the closest enemy ship, causing much damage.

"Three minutes sir" answered a young lieutenant with a grin.

"Once the President and his entourage are clear, we will make those space monsters pay for their crimes against us" boomed the Admiral to everyone in the Command Center.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Lunamaria took out another Windam when her sister appeared on screen. The elder sister was about to inform the younger that it was not a good time to talk. However, the expression on Meyrin's face stopped her and she let her speak. After absorbing the information, Luna's eyes widened.

"What about Commander Benett? What is he saying?" asked the elder Hawk sister.

"Captain Taila is trying to persuade him. Sister, you need to get everyone out of there" said Meyrin, panic in her voice.

"What about Athrun?" asked the elder Hawk sister.

"He and the commandos are getting out as we speak; he orders you and the rest of the forces to let all enemies escape" informed the younger sister.

"Why?" asked Luna, confused.

"Apparently the President of the Atlantic Federation is at Daedalus" answered Meyrin.

"This keeps getting better and better" muttered the Sub-Commander. She was starting to feel that the entire operation was one big flop.

Meyrin signed off and Lunamaria activated her general comm. She knew that she would have to exert a great deal of authority in order to get everyone to withdraw; especially when it came to Shinn and Rey.

"This is Sub-Commander Lunamaria to all units; I hereby order the immediate withdrawal from Daedalus" boomed the woman over the comm. As expected, Shinn's and Rey's faces appeared on screen.

"Why are you ordering a withdrawal?" demanded Shinn angrily. Rey stayed silent but appeared to be glaring at the Lunamaria as well.

"I have no time to explain; everyone out now" said Luna as she maneuvered Impulse to escape. Complying with the orders, the various ZAFT suits began their withdrawal at high speeds.

Cursing, Shinn was about to trail the retreating forces when something caught his eye.

A good ways away, a single ship rose from the lunar surface from an underground hanger. Escorted by a group of six Windams, the vessel began its flight away from the base. Recognizing it, Shinn activated his thrusters and gave chase. Luna, catching notice of Shinn's movement and his target, called out to him.

"Shinn, I am ordering you to let that ship go! Shinn!" yelled Lunamaria in anger.

Shinn heard her calls but ignored her and shut off the communications link He wasn't going to let anyone get in his way. With its anti-ship sword in hand, Shinn flew at the retreating Girty Lue and its escort.

The Windams detected the Gundam's approach and moved to intercept. Not wanting to bother what he considered flies, Destiny dodged their shots and flew right past them. Stopping right in front of the ship, Shinn turned around and saw the bridge. Destiny flew up and hovered outside the bridge. He ignored the terrified faces of the people on the bridge and raising his huge sword.

"Now young man; don't be hasty" said Copeland, watching the Gundam preparing to strike. Seeing that the statement was futile, President Joseph Copland closed his eyes and actually smiled.

He found it ironic that his successor was going to be the first Coordinator to become President of the Atlantic Federation. He almost pitied his killers since his successor, a Coordinator, despised the PLANTs just as much as the Blue Cosmos. His last thought was of his wife and son, whom at his request, stayed at the family mansion in the Dakota province.

Destiny's anti-ship sword slashed into the bridge of the Girty Lue, killing everyone inside. The ship fell into the lunar surface and exploded, leaving no survivors. Flying away from the wreckage and pursuing Windams. Shinn laughed in glee at the thought of killing what he thought was the leaders of the Blue Cosmos.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

Everyone in the Command Center stared at the screen as they watched smoke rise from the wrecked Girty Lue. Weimer clenched his hands in rage and slammed the fist into the console next to him.

"How much of ZAFT has retreated?" asked the EA Admiral, his voice dripping venom.

"Only a small portion; from what I am able to gather, there is a problem with their chain of command" answered an ensign who was monitoring the enemy's communications.

"Good; is everything ready?" asked Weimer.

"Yes Sir; all you need is to press the command in front of you" said a Lieutenant in a solemn tone.

"Very well then; Gentlemen, it has been an honor serving you" said Weimer to everyone present. There were nods and prayers could be heard throughout the room.

Pressing a single button at the command station, Admiral Weimer bellowed out loud "For the Preservation of our blue and pure world!"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Though the Requiem wasn't completed due to the lack of funding from LOGOS, the Blue Cosmos had other projects being worked on at Daedalus. One of these was research and construction of new sources of power.

When ZAFT used its neutron stampeder to stop the nuclear attack on the PLANTs following the break the world incident, it became clear to Djibril that nuclear weapons and energy was a threat. The fear of ZAFT using its new weapon to use nuclear energy against them was so great that massive amount of funding was spent to pursue new sources of energy.

A breakthrough was used in the successful construction of the first anti-matter reactor. Though unstable at the time, it proved to be far more powerful than nuclear energy and research into the new power source continued after Djibril's death.

It was also hoped that anti-matter could be used as a weapon at some point. Scientists at Daedalus were ordered to find a way to harness anti-matter into a bomb. The one reactor was even converted into a trigger in case ZAFT attempted to steal the secret of harnessing anti-matter from the Blue Cosmos.

The power of the blast consumed Daedalus in a single bright flash of light. Though Lunamaria and her team managed to escape, there were still various ZAFT forces located throughout the area of the base that ignored her warning. All of them were consumed by the blast, incinerated without leaving a trace of wreckage.

Athrun and the commandos managed to get out just in time. Ignoring the perimeter defenses, the Gouf and its cargo flew at high speed to avoid the blast. Though his Gouf was a little singed, he made it back to the Minerva in one piece.

The tremors of the explosion were felt all over the moon. Panic and chaos spread throughout the various lunar bases and cities, prompting the immediate launch of all EA orbital fleets. By the time the EA arrived at the crater that was once Daedalus, ZAFT was long gone.

At Heavens Base, Nichos Ayanami watched the explosion through a link with a spy satellite controlled by his organization. He was lying in bed, watching the scene on his private monitor.

"So it begins" said Nichos, smiling at the thought of what was to happen in the days ahead.

Author's Note: This was the longest chapter I have yet written. This was also my first time writing a mass battle scene and hope I did well. Let me know what needs to be corrected and expanded so I can do better with the next big battle.

Chapters dealing with major battles will be about this long. I thought about breaking up the battle into multiple chapters but decided against it.

I do not know when the next chapter will be released but it should be out before the year is up. I need to update my other stories and I have a new AU fic in the works that deals with the first GS series.

The next chapter, when released, will deal with the immediate aftermath of the battle and the EA's retaliation. Expect some politics and some new characters as well as Kira&Co's reaction. I will also have some new suits and units as well. One of which I borrowed from Warhammer 40k.

I also want to thank Noshmono for the idea of using anti-matter in this fic. I hope I used it correctly and everyone approves of it.

Until next time! Please R&R!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed, Gundam Seed Destiny, or any other elements from other materials used.

Hugo Santiago loved his job.

When he was first appointed press secretary for the Earth Alliance after Director Ayanami came to power, Hugo was surprised to say the least. It appeared that the top was finally recognizing his hard work.

As one of the few Coordinators working for the Earth Alliance, he regulated to grunt work in the press office. Though he knew of more than a few Naturals that deserved their positions, others he felt were appointed because of their connections and not their actual talent.

From behind the blue curtain, he watched as over thirty reporters filed into the press room. The reporters hailed from every major news service from all over the Earth Sphere and the actual press release would be live. The eyes of everyone in the Earth Sphere would be upon him and Hugo was feeling a little bit nervous. The current mood in Heavens Base was grim as it was and he had not slept since the attack on Daedalus twenty-four hours ago.

Every bit of what he was going to say had been gone over with Director Ayanami and his staff. The Director had been direct in what Hugo was to say and not to say; there were certain words Hugo was not to use, the Director threatened to have the Press Secretary shot if he did use the words. Hugo wasn't sure if the man was serious or not, but he did not want to find out.

As the last of the reporters took their seats, Santiago took a deep breath and gathered his notes. Taking one last look at his secretary, Marina Gustav, who smiled at him and gave him a thumbs up, Hugo walked onto the stage and over to the podium.

Clearing his throat, Hugo looked down at his notes and up at the crowd of reporters. Making sure his facial features were impassive, he began to speak.

"Thank you all for coming; Twenty-four hours ago, ZAFT forces launched an unprovoked attack on Daedalus Lunar Base. This attack was baseless and resulted in the complete destruction of the Lunar Base.

Director Ayanami, as head of the Earth Alliance, has expressed deep disappointment in the aggression by the PLANT Government and has declared that the cease-fire between the Earth Alliance and the PLANTs is now ended."

"What about ZAFT's claim that Daedalus contained an arsenal of nuclear weapons and that the base itself was controlled by the Blue Cosmos?" asked a reporter, interrupting Hugo.

"Daedalus did not have any nuclear weapons of any type. ZAFT's claim is completely baseless" answered Hugo in a steady voice.

………………………………………………………………………………………….

"That's a lie!" yelled an enraged Commander Benett at the screen.

Seated in Gilbert Durandal's office at Aprilus One with the Chairman and other ZAFT military officers, the group was watching the press release.

It was widely known that Benett's position was in jeopardy after the Daedalus fiasco. ZAFT had lost a large amount of military might in the failed attack and the news that Daedalus lacked nuclear weapons had made things worse. There were many on the PLANT council who called for Benett's dismissal as head of naval intelligence.

"What about Commander Zala's and Meyrin Hawk's claim?" asked Commander Amalfi, raising an eyebrow.

"I still find it hard to believe that a young girl could hack Daedalus's computer network; obviously the young girl fell into a trap" declared Benett, believing his own words. Many of the assembled officers rolled their eyes.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"What about the Blue Cosmos?" asked the same reporter.

"While many personnel of the lunar base were members of the Blue Cosmos, Daedalus was an _Earth Alliance_ base and not a Blue Cosmos Base; ZAFT had no right to launch a preeminent attack" declared Santiago.

"Not even if the group was planning to use the installation as a base to launch an attack on the PLANTs?" asked another reporter.

"If that was true, the PLANT Government should have come to the Earth Alliance first before attacking. As it stands, Daedalus lacked the military power to even launch an aggressive attack" stated the Press Secretary.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

"That is true" remarked Shiho as she took a sip of lemonade.

"Really?" asked Tad Elsman, looking at the girl from his chair.

Sitting on the patio at the Joule mansion and watching the press release, the group was consisted of Ezra and Yzak Joule, Shiho, Dearka, and his father Tad Elsman who just retook his position on the PLANT council. The assemblage had gotten together for a meeting on what to do about the renewed war.

"Yeah; the forces at Daedalus were too few to launch any type of attack" answered Dearka before Shiho. Munching on a Danish, he was about to say something more when a glare from his father told him not to talk with his mouth full.

"I wonder if Gilbert knew?" asked Ezra, sipping her tea. Currently still under house arrest, she still involved herself in the affairs of the PLANT Council.

"If he did, he didn't relay it to Benett" stated Yzak, watching the broadcast. There was something off about what was being said in the press release, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

"The military deaths at Daedalus are estimated at 30,000; we are still compiling the data and will have a more accurate figure soon. We are also notifying the families of the personnel lost and wish to extend the deepest condolences to those who lost a family member in this act of PLANT aggression" stated Hugo with some sympathy in his voice.

"Were there any survivors?" asked a female reporter.

"Scattered pilots who were outside the blast zone when Daedalus self-destructed its reactor" answered the man, taking a glance at the time on the clock located on the far wall.

"It is rumored that Daedalus was experimenting with a new type of energy source and that is what was used to destroy the base; is there any substance to that?" asked a male reporter from Copernicus City.

"Yes, that rumor is true; Daedalus was used to test new sources of energy that will one day replace nuclear power used on earth" answered the press secretary. There was a muttering and whispers amongst the reporters.

"Is it also true that Atlantic Federation President Copeland was also killed at Daedalus along with his ministers" asked the same reporter. A hush washed over the room as many other reporters turned to stare at the speaker; Hugo was surprised himself by the question since he was waiting to unleash that bombshell till the end of the press conference.

"I am sad to admit that it is true; President Copeland was killed by ZAFT forces when his ship was destroyed by the Destiny Gundam in an attempt to escape the base. Director Ayanami has offered his extreme condolences to the Atlantic Federation Government and citizens for this tragic loss" informed the press secretary with the saddest look he could muster.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Nice going Shinn" said Athrun sarcastically, not bothering to take his eyes off the screen. He could feel the youth's glare but did not care.

He and most of the other pilots of Minerva were sitting in the ship's lounge, watching the press conference. There were also members of the crew present as well including Meyrin and Arthur Trine.

After the conclusion of the battle, Athrun wanted to throw Shinn in the brig for disobeying orders. However, there was very little proof that he disobeyed Lunamaria's orders since Shinn claimed, and backed up by Rey, that he had suffered communication's problems and did not receive the orders. So for the time being, there was nothing Athrun could do.

"I am surprised that they are admitting everything" said Lunamaria from Athrun's side. The two were seated together along with Meyrin in front of the screen. For some reason he could not understand, Athrun felt uneasy sitting between the two sisters.

"It is strange that they are leaving nothing out" admitted Rey from the back of the room next to the exit. He was still dressed in his uniform like everyone else present.

Athrun nodded and continued to watch the broadcast. He was hoping to see Nichos speak and was surprised that his former friend had yet to make a public appearance of any sort. What the press secretary said next caused him to raise his eyes in disbelief.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"In accordance to the rules of succession by the Atlantic Federation Constitution, Education Minister Chelsea Watts has assumed the presidency of the Atlantic Federation. She has pledge her nation's full support in fighting the war with the PLANTs" stated Hugo to a stunned audience.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"I never thought I would see the day that a Coordinator would become President of the Atlantic Federation" said Cagalli as she watched the broadcast in her office.

"Do you think she will last?" asked Kira, seated at one of the chairs in front of the desk.

"She is pretty popular with the people and her reforms have been very beneficial to the nation. She is also a major proponent of the war despite Durandal's LOGOS speech" answered Lacus, seated in the other chair.

Both Kira and Lacus had arrived in the Eternal a few weeks ago and were helping Cagalli with the rebuilding of Orb. The Serian family with their LOGOS masters had done great damage to the nation's military infrastructure as well as its reputation abroad. Lacus and Cagalli had also agreed that coordinating their resources was in their best interest to deal with the coming war and Durandal's Destiny Plan.

"Why?" asked Kira, not sure why a Coordinator would call for war against the PLANTs.

"She hates the PLANTs for some unknown reason; thinks of the people there as cowards and traitors" answered Cagalli, leaning back in her chair.

"Will we remain neutral as planned?" inquired Kira as he watched the broadcast.

"Yes; though I somewhat lean towards the Alliance" stated the Orb leader, surprising her brother and friend.

"Is it because of the changes to the Alliance?" asked Lacus.

"Yes; though I suspect that they have a hidden agenda" said the blond.

"I would not be surprised with Nichos in charge" admitted Kira.

"I thought he was your friend" asked the pink princess in puzzlement.

"He is or was since it has been a while since we've seen each other; it's just that he was the sort of person who always had a hidden agenda or plan. That is why Athrun and I hated playing with him at times; he always had something that trumped us" informed the Ultimate Coordinator, recalling the happier times of his past.

"Do you think he wants to eradicate the PLANTs?" asked Cagalli to her brother before taking a sip of her drink.

"No, though I was never sure of his genetic makeup. He displayed characteristics of both Naturals and Coordinators" stated Kira.

"Have you noticed it yet?" asked Lacus suddenly. Kira did not know what she was talking about but Cagalli nodded in response to her question.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Will there be a retaliation strike in response to ZAFT's aggression" asked a reporter who secretly belonged to Alliance intelligence. Hugo smiled, knowing that was the signal for the end of the press release.

"Yes" answered the press secretary.

"When?" asked the same reporter, glancing at the clock.

"Now" and with that said, Hugo Santiago left the stage with yelling reporters in his wake, demanding to know what he meant. When he was out of sight of the mass of reporters whom could be heard yelling for him to come back, Hugo leaned against the wall and sighed in relief that it was over.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Captain Yuri Putin of the EA submarine carrier Scinfaxi watched the screen as his vessel slowly entered the outer perimeter of ZAFT's Lagash undersea base. Standing at only five feet and being fifty years of age, he put his hand over the top of his bald head which he only did when he was feeling uneasy.

The massive vessel had yet to be detected with the thanks to its caterpillar drive. The stealth system made the submarine undetectable to ZAFT's and the Equatorial Union's sonar, making it easy to bypass the EU's patrol ships.

Though the ship was massive, the bridge area was only medium size. It had room for about twenty when fully manned and at times, it was quite packed. Putin himself had often stepped on the toes of his subordinates when walking around the bridge. Currently the enclosed space was barely lit with a red light.

Not only was it his first time out with the newly commissioned vessel, but it was his first time with a mixed crew. Usually Alliance ships contained the soldiers of the nation the vessel belonged to. However, that changed when Director Ayanami came to power.

All vessels of the Earth Alliance had mixed crews from different nations. It was part of the Director's plan for complete integration of the Alliance forces whom he felt needed to fight together as a real Alliance. Half of Yuri's crew and his first officer were made up of Atlantic Federation and his chief engineer was from the South African Union.

It was a little uneasy at first; the mix of AF and Eurasian soldiers barely got along and a few fights broke out. After a while though, they slowly began to work together. It took Putin a while for himself to get used to his female first officer who had an impressive chest. Though she was a fine officer and did her duty well, there were times that he wished he had his old first officer back; even though he was given command of the Hrimfaxi, the Scinfaxi's sister submarine.

"Sir, we'll be in range to fire in two minutes" informed his first officer, Marcie Glatia, from her post located towards the front of the bridge.

The bridge was wedged-shaped with lines of personnel manning their stations on each side along the walls and a large screen at the end for view of the outside. Modern technology had enabled the Scinfaxi to be the first submarine with cameras on the outside of the vessel.

"Very well; have all torpedo tubes ready to fire" ordered the man to the blond woman. Commander Glatia nodded and relayed the orders.

When he first received orders to attack and decimate the base; he was curious to know if there was a risk of having to engage Equatorial Union ships. Though the EU's vessels were pitiful and were no where near a match for the massive vessel, Putin knew the political ramifications of an engagement.

According to his brother, who was one of the senior Admirals in the EA as well as the person who have him the ship and mission, only a few in the EU knew of the base and was supplying it. There were those in the EU who supported ZAFT and were secretly deceiving their citizens and elements in their Government in establishing the base within the EU's territory. Once word got out, the backlash against ZAFT and the PLANTs would be enormous.

As the ship neared the inner workings of the base, Yuri could see the many buildings and docks that were on the bottom of the ocean. He already had a plan on which targets to hit first when he reviewed the plans of the base in his study. Intelligence had actually come through for once.

"We're in range" announced the weapons officer.

"Fire at these selected targets" ordered the Captain, relaying the info through his terminal.

Putin watched as sixteen torpedoes left the Scinfaxi and traveled into Lagash. The explosions could be seen clearly as the torpedoes slammed into the submarine and mobile suit pens, either destroying them or causing the ocean to flood in. In one strike, the Scinfaxi had eliminated the only defense of the base.

After that, it was like shooting fish in a barrel **(I have yet to see the episode of Mythbusters where this myth is dealt with)** and the base was leveled building by building. Yuri knew that the installation still had a number of underground chambers which were mostly shelters, but it was the functions of the base itself that was the target. So he refrained using the Scinfaxi's compliment of mobile suits in its hanger.

"Sir, we have movement on the surface" announced Marcie from her station.

"It looks like our mission is more than complete; take us out" ordered Captain Putin. From what he was able to observe, the base was more than dealt with and the amount of noise he made was sure to get a lot of people's attention.

The Scinfaxi made its way out of Equatorial Union territory just as the nation itself discovered the hidden base within its borders. The vessel was never detected and made it back to Pearl Harbor with no incident.

Thus it continued.

Author's Note: Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoy the chapter and promise an update for you by the end of January after the update to GS Homeworld.

If you have noticed "it" during the press release, kudos to you; if not, then it will be revealed next chapter.

Next update will deal with new MSs as well as Fllay. Also Meer will be in the update and will have her life changed forever. There will also be a lot of political elements as well with the EU and backlash against ZAFT.

Please R&R!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Still don't own any of it

Jakarta was burning.

Though the area where she was currently was located was safe at the moment, Fllay could visibly see the fires that consumed most of the city. The sky was bright and orange, despite the fact that it was late at night, and blotted out the stars.

As she continued to stare out the window, the number of protesters at the gates of the Government Offices was continuing to grow. The large crowd was acting peaceful at the moment, but when the flood of rioters arrived it would get ugly.

There were troops on the inside of the perimeter, ready for any type of action and they were backed up by an assortment of military vehicles. It was a small force though with most of the military in the city trying to quell the violence.

In the six days since the Earth Alliance had entered Equatorial Union territory and destroyed ZAFT's Lagash Base, the nation has been rocked with civil unrest. Mass riots and protests have erupted in every major city from New Delhi to Jakarta, leaving mass chaos in their wake.

Most of the anger was directed at ZAFT and the Equatorial Union Government for having the secret base within the country's borders. The EU's citizens were outraged that the Government had involved them in the war without their knowledge or approval.

There were few protesters who had sided with ZAFT and took to the streets to show their support. However, they were very little in number and clashes with other protesters had gotten violent. Many had been killed and the death toll was growing by the hour as supporters of the EA, who had taken to the streets themselves, continued to clash with ZAFT supporters.

It was equally chaotic within the EU Government. Very few within the Gov actually knew about the ZAFT base and were secret supporters of ZAFT despite the Equatorial Union's neutrality. Those very same supporters had fled when the violence started.

The EU President had found out about the base along with the rest of the nation, which made things worse for him because it left him no time to prepare himself for what was to come. Just recently elected, he was still on shaky ground due to problems with the EU economy, which was becoming unstable due to loss of business to the growing economic partnership between the PLANTs and the Republic of East Asia.

The only bright spot was that the military, though very small in size, was firmly behind him and undivided. General Abhay, head of the military, had used the armed forces accordingly and had dispatched troops to the hot spots. The nation's full force of sixty-five Strike Daggers, left over from the last war, was out in the field as well.

"Miss Allster" greeted a voice from behind Fllay. Turing her wheelchair to the source of the voice, she saw General Abhay had arrived in full military dress. Fllay was dressed in a white pair of slacks with a red overcoat that matched her hair.

Tall and dark skinned, the man haled from the northern region of what was once India. Though he was fairly young, Fllay could see that the man was haggard and his uniform a little worn. She knew that the last six days have been stressful for the General and she wondered if he had gotten any sleep at all.

"Good evening General; I hope that my arrival is not a burden" said Fllay as politely as possible. She wanted to offer her help without alienating the man.

"Not at all; I'll escort you to the President" said the General, leading the way as Fllay wheeled her way from behind the man. Seres had accompanied the woman and was right behind Fllay.

After a minute, the three came to a pair of large double doors that were guarded by a pair of soldiers armed with rifles. Saluting the man, they then opened the door to a large conference room in which the trio entered. The room was quite large with a long rectangular table in the center and a large screen on the far right wall. The entire room was painted brown and the ceiling was white because of the plaster.

Fllay spotted President Datu at the end of the table, looking over paperwork as the room bustled about around him with various ministers talking on their phones while their assistants held out paperwork. He was fifty years of age which showed because if the grey hair on his head. He was also very short and stocky. His eyesight was somewhat poor and had to wear glasses all the time.

As she wheeled her way towards the EU leader, Datu looked up and smiled at Fllay as she approached. Fllay could see relieved glint in his eyes to her arrival as he stood up to greet the woman. Abhay took up a position behind his President, looking at the reports on the table.

"Ms. Allster, I am very happy to see you" said President Datu, extending his hand.

"Thank you Mr. President" said Fllay, taking the hand to shake it.

"I hope that you were not hindered too much on your way here" said Datu after sitting back down. Fllay could see that the man was even more haggard than Abhay.

"Not too much trouble; my escort managed to find a safe route here" said the red-head.

"That is good; things are starting to get worse" said the man, taking a drink of what Fllay presumed was alcohol.

"I can see that; I am here to offer what ever help you need to absolve this crisis" informed Fllay. Datu's eyes lit up at that and Abhay even looked somewhat relieved.

Currently, Fllay ran a conglomerate of several companies that spread throughout the Equatorial Union, the Republic of East Asia, and the United States of South America. The conglomerate was run by her mother and her family before Fllay took it over after the first war. The large business empire was mostly composed agricultural and mineral resource centers; however, she also had an arms manufacturer which was controlled by the organization she belonged to.

"What are you offering?" asked the EU President.

"As you know, I have a private security force which protects my business interests abroad and here as well. I offer their support in this present crisis" informed the handicapped woman. Both men looked at each other before staring at the woman.

"What you are offering my nation is considerable; I have heard rumors about this private force of yours and its capabilities. I hope this is not too much trouble for you" said the President, trying to keep the relief out of his voice.

"It is not too much trouble at all; with our combined force, we could quell this current crisis and restore order to your nation" stated Fllay with a smile.

"What do you have at the moment; these forces of yours have to be spread our throughout your other business sites" said General Abhay in a neutral tone. However, Fllay could see in the man's eyes that his military seriously needed help in suppressing the rioters.

"At the moment, twenty-five mobile suits and five-hundred troops; I know the force seems small but they are well trained and very well equipped" informed the red head.

"They will be a welcomed addition to our military in this emergency; when can you deploy them?" asked the General, who now seemed to be taking over.

"Right now; I believe that we should secure the capital before moving to the other major cities" said Fllay, turning her head to Seres. The bodyguard nodded her head and spoke into her mouth piece.

"I agree; I will alert our forces to expect yours" said Abhay, walking away to use the phone to inform his

"That may help things but it won't solve the immediate problem" said the EU President, looking at the wall screen which showed a new report of the crisis.

"I agree with that assessment Mr. President; maybe its time to speak with the people directly and appeal to them" said Fllay.

"I have tried that already but it didn't work" stated Datu.

"With great respect Mr. President, just asking the citizens to remain calm was not nearly enough. What you have to do is explain to the people that you had nothing to do with the construction of Lagash and was unaware that it was within the Equatorial Union's borders. You need to tell the people that you were much a victim in this as they were in this ZAFT conspiracy" said the red head.

"But that will make me look weak" said Datu in protest.

"Yes but now is not time for foolish pride if you want to retain power and bring order to your nation. What also you need to do is inform the people of the real culprits in this crisis and that they have all fled. Then you ask them to help you and your remaining Government track down these traitors. You have to appeal to their patriotism Datu and tell them that this violence is pointless" stated Fllay as serious as she could.

"But won't the people see that as a smokescreen?" asked the EU leader, not fully convinced.

"If it was a lie, yes; but everything you tell them will be true in a way. You need to shift blame to ZAFT and their cohorts. I would also advise opening a dialogue with the EA to assure them of your nation's continued neutrality" answered Fllay, assuring the man.

The EU President nodded and called over his speech writer. As the two conversed, Fllay watched on screen as reporters showed new mobile suits arriving in Jakarta to support the EU military. The orange-clad Methusses arrived in their mobile armor modes and switched to mobile suit modes when they arrived to support a trio of Strike Daggers.

Fllay knew that she had now a permanent place within the EU Government. After the present crisis was absolved, she knew that the EU would realize that upgrading their military was in the best interest of their nation. The EU would then turn to her in for help in that matter. President Datu would also use her as one of his main advisers as well which gave her even more power.

She hated having to manipulate the EU like that. It reminded her of her crime in manipulating Kira to fight for her in the first war. Fllay knew though that it was for the greater good and she would atone for the crime later. She had to do what she needed to do in order to advance the organization's plans or all would be lost.

Fllay had her children's future to think of.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Nichos looked up at the row Destroy Gundams.

"You know when I first saw the blueprints to these things, I considered them a waste of resources and construction time" said the Director, not taking his eyes off the mammoth suits.

"What changed?" asked Obali, standing next to the EA leader and also staring at the Destroys.

"The footage of the one used at Berlin; I admit that I was in a state of shock and awe at seeing it in action" answered Director Ayanami.

"Is that why you ordered their continued production?" asked the EA Intelligence head, looking at the younger man.

"Yes; they also have great value in defensive operations as well. Which is why I have them dispersed throughout Eastern Europe and South Africa" said Nichos.

The two men continued onto their destination, heading deeper into the underground factory complex of Heavens Base. This area of the base contained highly classified material and was off limits except for a select few. Instead of normal soldiers, elite Special Forces guarded this section of the base.

Jennifer Wayne saw Directors Ayanami and Obali from a distance as she kneeled on the shoulder of the prototype mobile suit being worked by her and the rest of her team.

The youngest member of the team, she was only fifteen and considered a child genius. Standing at five-feet tall and very skinny, she had long blond hair and blue eyes; a trait given to her by her parents when she was birthed a Coordinator. Her parents were Naturals who were farmers at Sextilis Seven.

Three years ago, Jennifer's parents were murdered by supporters of Patrick Zala who accused the pair of being spies. Jennifer was attending an engineering school at the time and when she learned of her parent's death, demanded justice. However, her cries went unheard and the girl left the PLANTs in anger.

She had longed sought revenge against ZAFT for the murder of her parents and was recruited by the organization that saw her talents. She was placed into the MS development team and respected by its members. She was also extremely loyal to Nichos Ayanami, whom she looked up to.

Swinging herself down to the catwalk, she and the rest her team greeted the Director and his companion as they arrived.

"Wow, so this is it" said Nichos looking up at the new suit in admiration.

"Yes Sir; May I present the GAT-05 Strike Liberty" said Dr. Robbins, head of the development team.

"I have to admit that I agree with your assessment; it does look like a Strike Freedom clone" stated Obali.

The EA was able to acquire the plans to the Gundam through their spies in Orb. The Gundam itself could not be replicated due to the fact that it was specifically designed for Kira Yamato, so the EA handed the plans off to their primary engineering team. In the month since they received the plans, the team had managed to design and build their own scaled-down version that could be mass produced.

"It only has maybe half the firepower of the original SF bit is still the most advanced mass produced MS in the Earth Sphere. Unlike the Gundam though, it is battery powered and the pilot can only use two DRAGOONS" informed the elderly engineer.

"So only Coordinators can pilot it" stated Obali with a frown.

"No; anyone can thanks to Ms. Wayne here. Her neural interface system not only allows for high performance by the pilot but to also successfully utilize the DRAGOONs without the use of drugs or genetic enhancements" informed Dr. Robbins, motioning to the young girl.

"So it is superior to anything that ZAFT currently has?" asked Ayanami.

"Yes; it is far more maneuverable than a Zaku Warrior or any other mass produced ZAFT machine as well as housing more firepower. It is also a lot faster as well" informed an unnamed member of the team.

"Excellent; are we ready for mass production?" asked Nichos, smiling at Jennifer who sheepishly smiled back.

"Yes; however we advise full training for the pilots before sending them out onto the battlefield" said another member of the team.

"Very well then; I'll leave the training and construction up to your team when you arrive at your new location" said the EA leader, startling the assembled engineers and scientists.

"What do you mean Director?" asked Jennifer, clearly confused.

"I am moving you and your entire team to a safer location; you are my principle development team and I want each of you safe" said Nichos in an attempt to assure them.

"Where are we going sir?" asked Robbins, somewhat appreciative of the praise they were all given.

"There is a new facility in South America that is top secret. You will be stationed there and will be given whatever resources you need. I want this suit mass produced and pilots trained as quickly as you can" ordered Director Ayanami, stressing the importance of the task.

"You can count on us sir" said Jennifer in full confidence as the rest of her peers nodded in agreement.

Jennifer was the only one who secretly knew of Nichos Ayanami's and his organization's Unification Initiative. She had discovered it accidentally when she hacked the files because of her paranoia when she was first brought into the organization. She vowed that she would do her part to ensure the plan's success.

What ever the cost.

Author's Note: Here is my gift to end the year and I hope you guys enjoyed the update. I am not sure when the next one will be up but it will be after the next chapter of Ghosts and the update to one of my Eva fics.

I hope the politics of the chapter wasn't too much of a bore and hope you enjoyed it. If this seems a little OOC of Fllay, keep in mind this is four years after the events GS.

Next update will feature Meer who will have a much bigger role in this fic. Also expect to see Nova as well and I am sorry that she wasn't in this chapter. She will be in the next one, I promise!

Please R&R!


	11. Chapter 11

First Off, I am sorry to say that this is not an update but a rant

First Off, I am sorry to say that this is not an update but a rant!

I would like to address the one who sent me a flame through my personal e-mail: ZaftFan2654, who cowardly deleted his e-mail account soon after so I could not reply. This wasn't done through a review or PM- but trough my e-mail account directly!

I don't appreciate being flamed just because I tend to have ZAFT as the "bad guy" in my fics- in fact, that just pisses me off. I also don't like it when people like you (ZaftFan2654) who criticize my stories just because I show favoritism towards the EA and place them in a more realistic grey area than what the series depicts. I also see the EA and LOGOS/Blue Cosmos as separate entities as well.

I don't like ZAFT

I am one of the proud few who are not ZAFT Fan Boys who says that the EA is inherently evil. I also am proud that I don't create "super good guy" characters that do no wrong and are perfect. So I don't like it when I am called to make a story like "Valkyrie's Run" because it's more "realistic" to the series. Dragoon Swordsman has his opinions on GS/GSD and I have mine; I am not going to bow down to the "ZAFT is Good" ideology. I have seen evil acts by both sides of the conflicts.

So if people don't like what I am doing- DON'T READ THEN!!

So next time anyone e-mails me directly to flame me on my stories and list the so called "good qualities" of ZAFT- at least let me respond to I could point out all the evil ZAFT has done as well.

On a final note, I was so angry that I was thinking of abandoning my GSD Fics all together- but then I thought- that's what you (ZaftFan2654) want isn't it? Well I am going to do the exact opposite.

So expect a fic coming out that will be a Kira/Lacus pairing and will view ZAFT/PLANTs as the supreme evil in the universe. I don't like acting childish but what was said was not nice and think of this as a sort of vengeance.

As for the real updates- all will be out by the end of the month for "Checkmate", "Ghosts", "Sins", "Lamentations", and "GSD Homeworld".

Thank you for reading.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: Still don't own it; except for the OCs

Disclaimer: Still don't own it; except for the OCs

Ensign Stanton watched as another Windam exploded.

Taking cover behind a huge rock, Stanton breathed heavily and pondered about what his next move should be.

It was hot inside the cockpit with the sky clear and the sun overhead. The African landscape was wide open with the tall yellow grass glistening in the sun. There was an absence of animal life which had all fled when the battle started.

His unit, which was composed of twelve Windams and twenty support vehicles, had been ordered to engage the southeast sector of ZAFT's defensive perimeter along the African Community/South African Union border. It was part of a major operation to push upwards into ZAFT territory as well as create a larger buffer point between ZAFT and Victoria.

Stanton knew that other units were engaging along the border and he wondered how they were fairing. He doubted the news was good since Headquarters were unaware of the ZAFT's new defenses along the border.

His unit was now down to five Windams and seven vehicles after being slaughtered by shell fire emanating from the hills about a mile away. They had been caught completely by surprise by a series of bunkers which housed artillery.

The ground in front of him exploded and Stanton's Windam was thrown backwards by the blast. Dirt and dust flew up, temporarily blinding the mobile suit. The young man decided to take to the air to assess the situation.

Unfortunately, he had forgotten why he was on the ground in the first place as the alarm went off in his cockpit.

Before it could react, the Windam was suddenly hit by a volley of anti-air missiles that slammed into the underside of the mobile suit. Both the legs were blown off and the Windam started to fall as another group of missiles headed to intercept the damaged MS. However, just as the missiles were about to hit the Windam, a pair of beam shots took out the projectiles.

Nova grabbed the Windam and gently laid it down on the dirt ground away from the fighting. After making sure the pilot was safe to leave, she rose into the air.

The Strike was faced with a fury of missile and beam fire. Activating her planet defensers, the barrier it created prevented the Gundam from being damaged. Nova was glad that the MS had been upgraded with a nuclear reactor seeing how the planet defenser system used up a lot of energy.

From what she was able to tell, the bunkers housed both anti-air and anti-ground weaponry; Artillery to take out any units moving across the ground and anti-air to make sure they stay on the ground. As far as she could tell, the bunkers seem to be located on the forward hills which had a nice view of the landscape.

Nova decided to take the fight to the bunkers and flew towards the enemy positions with her planet defensers positioned directly in front of her to stop all incoming fire. The tactic seemed to work as she moved closer to her target and saw that the bunkers had been built right into the hills themselves.

Using her beam rifle, Nova began firing on the bunker to take out the missile launchers and beam cannons that were out in the open. After taking out a few of the fixed positions, the rest of them began to retract into the ground. Realizing that she could not take out all of them, the Strike hovered above and tried to take out as many as possible.

Alarms blared in her cockpit and she quickly evaded a beam shot that came from an adjoining hill. Nova used her barriers to block the shots but had to move due to fire that came from behind her from another hill. Realizing she was caught in crossfire, Nova moved to the ground in order to regroup. Taking up a position on the side of the hill, the Strike was temporarily safe from enemy fire.

Pulling out her beam saber, Nova began to cut into the hillside in order to try to get inside to do some damage. However, a passageway opened up a few meters above her and a Zaku appeared.

The Strike rolled to the right as it dodged a shot from the Zaku's beam rifle. Abandoning her cutting, Nova continued to roll around in order to avoid being hit by the enemy shots. She couldn't activate her planet defensers while lying on the ground but could not stand up because she could be in the crossfire once again.

A sudden explosion shook the ground and the Zaku fell on its face. Taking the opportunity to attack, Nova fired on the Zaku and the ZAFT MS exploded. There was another earthquake and Nova took to the air to see what was going on.

Nova was just in time to when the hill below her was struck by a blast from a Lohengrin cannon. The hill exploded in such fury that chunks of rock went everywhere and the Strike had to move higher in order not to be hit. The girl silently cursed for almost being hit.

Looking to see the source of the blast, Nova saw that the Seraphim had entered the battlefield. The Warship hovered about a hundred meters above the ground, using its pair of positron cannons to pound the enemy positions. All the girl could do was watch as the Seraphim turned the hills into craters.

Sensing movement, the Strike turned to see the Strike Noir fly up to her. Nova was puzzled when the Gundam began tapping its head but then realized that she had shut off her communications hub. She reactivated it and was met by Sven's voice.

"That was stupid of you to fly off on your own," stated the young man, clearly annoyed at her. Nova just shrugged.

"Our forces were being slaughtered; I could not just sit back and do nothing," retorted the Extended angrily.

"Charging in would have gotten you killed; do not do it again," ordered Sven as flew off back to the ship. Nova wondered if her relationship with Director Ayanami was why she wasn't punished.

The Strike remained behind to watch the end of the battle which was becoming a slaughter for ZAFT forces. They had been caught completely by surprise in regards to the warship and were defenseless; that made Nova smile.

Her smile dropped when she realized how frustrated she was. It was not only her but everyone on the Seraphim as well. Even Sven's calm demeanor was starting to crack.

Since the war began, the Minerva had yet to return to Earth. This had forced the Seraphim and its crew to carry out support missions for the various offensives being conducted around the world. The ship was deliberately being placed in a supporting role so that it could be ready to take on the Minerva at a moments notice.

Also, it seemed that there was nothing ZAFT's terrestrial arsenal that could take on the assault ship. It wasn't pride that made that claim but fact since ZAFT had been taken by surprise by the ship and its compliment of Gundams. So far, every engagement that the Seraphim had taken part in had ended with ZAFT being completely destroyed with no damage to the EA ship.

Nova felt cheated when she fought ZAFT grunts in battle; none were a challenge to her Gundam. She longed to face Destiny and settle her score with Shinn Asuka.

As the last enemy was destroyed, Nova turned to return to the ship. She hoped that the Minerva would return to the Earth soon because she was getting tired of these types of fights.

………………………………………………………………………………………….

Meer Campbell hummed to herself as she walked down the hallway, flanked by her escort.

The concert had gone off without a hitch and Meer was glad that she was able to raise the morale of Gibraltar. The base was on edge with the war being back on and everyone looked so tense.

She had heard that there was heavy fighting going on near Berlin. ZAFT was trying to push further into Eurasian territory but was facing heavy resistance. However, she was told very little by the Chairman about the current state of the war.

As she entered her dressing room, Meer's escort waited outside while she freshened up before heading to her hotel. Taking a seat at the vanity, she began to brush her hair while still humming.

Outside the dressing room, Sarah and two ZAFT soldiers stood guard while waiting for the young woman to finish up.

Sarah was starting to hate the assignment given to her by Durandal. She was one of the few who knew the truth that "Lacus" was really Meer; something that made her slightly nervous. It was only a matter of time before the Chairman would no longer have a use for the imposter and wondered if she would be eliminated as well for knowing so much.

Meer came out of the dressing room, having changed into her normal skimpy attire. Sarah sighed in annoyance because it meant that the young girl would leers from the various soldiers on base. It seemed that men were men no matter what their genetic make up was.

The group made their way to the limo which was parked at the back of the auditorium. It was dark out and the stars shown brightly in the sky. As they approached the vehicle, Sarah noticed the lack of military personnel about and became alert.

A noise caught her ears and she turned to see that the two escorting ZAFT soldiers had collapsed onto the ground, darts sticking out of their necks. Drawing her weapon, she watched as a trio of men it black approaching her and Meer.

Sarah knew that she could not hope to defend against what was coming at her, especially since they were armed with heavier weaponry. She was armed with only a pistol. Sarah decided that there was only one course of action to take.

When Sarah was first given her assignment, she was tasked in protecting the fake Lacus. She was also given an order that was to be initiated as a last resort if anyone tried to capture the young woman. If Meer's secret came out, it could politically destroy Durandal.

Sarah, instead of aiming for the attackers, pointed her weapon at Meer.

Meer stepped back in fear and shock, not sure what to make of anything. Seeing the gun pointed at her caused her to stumble and fall to the ground. She looked up and watched as Sarah started to pull the trigger. However, there was a silent pop and the left side of Sarah's head exploded, sending blood and brain matter everywhere. Before Meer could scream, she was knocked unconsciousness by a tranquilizer dart which lodged in her neck.

"Damn Jack, did you have to take out her like that?" asked Captain Matt Simmons of the Earth Alliance Special Forces.

"I had no choice; she was going to eliminate the target," stated Captain Jack Harkness as he checked on the condition of Meer.

"So much for a bloodless op," groaned the third member of the trio, Major Sam Johnson. He looked around to make sure the coast was clear before he and Matt moved the bodies out of the way.

"How long before they wake up?" asked Harkness as he picked up the pop star.

"About twelve hours; I am concerned though that the blood will draw attention," stated Simmons.

"All right, we'll leave the way we came; hopefully ZAFT hasn't discovered the breach in their sewer system yet. Move out," the Major ordered.

Gibraltar base, though new as a spaceport, was used by various nations throughout the centuries. It had been built by the Old British Empire and served as a foothold on the European continent until the Reconstruction Wars where it had been taken over by the Eurasian Federation. Every version of the base had been built over the previous one, leaving a vast underground complex of tunnels and sewers.

When ZAFT took over the base during the first war, they had limited their security to the upper most level of the sewer network. As a result, there was a massive hole in regards to Gibraltar's defense network that could be exploited.

The tunnel system ran for miles underneath the surface of the base and surrounding area. The passageway the three-man team used originated about three miles north from the main part of the military base; along the coast where a submarine lay hidden, ready to take the team back to Heavens Base.

The squad reached their insertion point near the motor pool. The storm drain was unguarded and the cutting of the sensor wires had yet to be noticed by the base's security. Johnson moved the grate out of the way and the three, with their target in hand, made their way into the storm drain. When all three were in, the Major closed the entrance behind them.

Instead of a drop, the drain was situated like a hill that curved downwards; making it easy to travel. Currently, the old brick stone was dry which made it lees steep; which was a relief to Harkness who had to carry Meer.

Reaching the bottom, the three made their way down the tunnel which was just big enough for them to move easily. The three refrained from talking as they moved quickly as possible. Speed was the key here since they had to make it back to the sub before it left. It the vessel waited too long, it would be detected by ZAFT and destroyed.

After an hour, the team made their way to the exit of the tunnel. It was still dark out and the ocean waves were beating against the rocks. Johnson took out his portable radio to communicate with the submarine that lay about a mile away.

"Doghouse, this is Beagle; we've acquired the prize. We're now heading in," said the Major as Captain Simmons readied the small inflatable motor boat hidden in the rocks.

"Is she alright? Director Ayanami was _very_ adamant about her safety," stated Doghouse through the radio.

"She's sleeping like a baby," said Johnson with a smirk.

After another two hours, the team was safely aboard their transport and the vessel made its way to Heavens Base. The team was happy that the mission was a success and were awaiting the reward that the Head of the Earth Alliance promised; a full rank promotion all around.

Knight takes Queen.

Author's Note: I am really sorry for the late update but some personal issues in my life took priority. I promise to try not to let it happen again.

I hope the chapter wasn't too weak; I assure you that the next one should be more interesting. Expect a newly promoted Athrun to make an appearance as well as Durandal's reaction to recent events. Also, you will be given a view into the plans of the organization Nichos and Fllay belong to when they have a full meeting with their compatriots.

The next update should be out by the beginning of June; Hopefully.

Please R&R!


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

Athrun frowned as he studied the display in front of him.

Sitting in his new office aboard the Minerva, the ZAFT Commander was looking at the latest reports of the war with the Earth Alliance.

It wasn't looking good.

Whatever advantage ZAFT once held was now gone. The support of the people had dissipated when ZAFT had launched the failed attack on Daedalus and had gone back the Earth Alliance. All the territory the PLANTs had gained were now under siege from heavy Alliance forces and ZAFT's offensives were not working because they had encountered more Destroys on the battlefield which were being used for defensive purposes in Eastern Europe.

There were also the reports of a new EA ship that was wreaking havoc on ZAFT forces in Africa. From what Athrun could tell, the EA was using a new type of warship that apparently resembled the Archangel and that it deployed a new Gundam team. It seemed that the EA had taken a cue from ZAFT in regards to the Minerva and his team.

If he had the time and military strength, Athrun knew that he could probably bring down the menace without resorting to using the Minerva, since it was undergoing a repairs still. However, the ZAFT Commander had neither to spare is conducting such a venture.

As the new Assistant Chief of Staff for all ZAFT forces on Earth, it was Athrun's job to come up with new strategies and battle plans for ZAFT's terrestrial forces. It seemed now that he had inherited quite a mess since no one had calculated such a vast change in the status of the war.

The door suddenly opened and Meyrin appeared with two cups of coffee in her hands. The young woman had been assigned as his secretary and Athrun had to admit that she was excellent at the job. Whenever he needed something, she got it for him with no questions asked.

"Thank you Meyrin," said Athrun, giving her a soft smile as he took the coffee cup from her.

"You're welcome Commander," Meyrin said, taking a sip from her own beverage.

"How's the mood out there?" the FAITH member asked. It had been a while since he had interacted with the rest of the crew.

"Tense; it started out as grim when all the offensives the EA was conducting against us were announced. The mood worsened when that footage of what happened near Warsaw was leaked to the news," answered the red-head with a grimace.

Athrun nodded and once again cursed the one who had done the deed. The footage showed how ZAFT forces, which launched an offensive to seize Warsaw's major production centers, was slaughtered by a Destroy Gundam. The scene had morally damaged the crew of the Minerva, who had faced the monstrosity before, and the thought of facing more of those things had spooked a lot of people.

"Well there is a strong possibility that we are going to have to fight a Destroy sometime in the future; we are the only unit who has successfully engaged a Destroy and lived to tell about it," explained Athrun, taking a seat. Meyrin took a seat in the chair opposite of him and the desk.

"But it was the Freedom that took the thing down in Berlin," argued the red-head.

"Yes; we do know now how to take down one thanks to Kira," the ZAFT Commander said.

"I guess you are happy that he is still alive," stated Meyrin. Athrun leaned back in his chair and sighed.

"Truthfully, yeah I am; I am just afraid on what will happen if we encounter him on the battlefield," Athrun said sadly.

"Do you think that's going to happen? Orb is a neutral nation now and I doubt they will be entering the war anytime soon," Meyrin said.

"I would agree if it weren't for the fact that Cagalli is building up the nation's military. I know that she would never ally with us after what happened but I am afraid that Orb might reenter the Earth Alliance," the FAITH member said.

"That wouldn't be good; especially with this new EA leader," said the young woman.

Athrun nodded and admitted that his friend had done a masterful job in not only rebuilding the Alliance militarily, but politically as well. Though the Republic of East Asia was technically no longer a member and was neutral, the rest of the Alliance members were doing well without them and were working very well together; which was funny given the animosity between the Atlantic and Eurasian Federation. Overall, the EA was fighting as one entity which was not good for ZAFT.

"I discovered something when I was online last night," said Meyrin, changing the subject.

"You really need to stop doing that; we are supposed to be in a communications blackout except for official reasons because of the heightened security," chastened the young man.

"I know; but this was important since I overheard another crewman talking about it and wanted to confirm what she said," defended Meyrin.

"What is it?" asked Athrun, shaking his head and was glad that the young woman was such a good hacker since if she was caught; he doubted that he could get her off.

"Meer has disappeared from public," informed the red-head, surprising Athrun. She was the only one he had told about the fake Lacus.

"What do you mean?" asked an alarmed Athrun, sitting up.

"That she has failed to make a single public appearance since her last concert. From what I was able to gather, Meer has not been seen at all on Earth or in the PLANTs," Meyrin explained.

"That's not good; I hope she is alright," said a worried Athrun. While he did not feelings of love for Meer, he was concerned for her as a friend.

"Do you want me to make some subtle inquiries?" asked the young woman.

"Yes; just be careful since something might be up," ordered the FAITH member.

"No problem; I am a master hacker after all," stated Meyrin, standing up and leaving the room. Before she left, Meyrin turned her head and smiled at him before she left the room. Athrun went back to work.

As she headed back to her quarters, Meyrin hummed happily to herself. Not only was she happy that she was Athrun's assistant, but that he had such trust in her as well.

She would do anything for him no matter what.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Nichos sat back as the screens in front of him lit up one by one, revealing a face on it.

Seated in his private office deep underground of Heavens Base, he was alone in the room. The lights had been completely turned off, shrouding the room in darkness except for the lit monitors on the wall.

"Well it's been a while since we have all been in contact like this," stated Nichos to the people on the monitors.

"That's understandable seeing on how we have all been busy," said Natasha Cherenko, her thick Russian accent echoing in the room.

"True, but everything has been progressing according to plan," said Sai.

"Which is impressive given the number of obstacles we have in our path," stated Obali. He was currently back located back in the South African Union.

"Which might increase if we are not careful," said Yavin Seiran. Nichos always found it amusing that the young man was always moody no matter what and that his bleach blond hair would make him stand out in any crowd he was in.

"I agree, but we should be proud of our accomplishments," interject Fllay, annoyed by Yavin's disposition.

"Which is why we are holding this meeting; what is the status of Jaburo?" Director Ayanami asked, looking at Sai.

"We are done with all the construction and are awaiting the stockpiles of supplies and personnel. The defenses are also ready and so we can go online whenever you are ready. The South American Government has been very helpful as well," informed young man.

"Excellent; Jaburo is not needed for now so just keep stockpiling what the base needs. How is the team doing?" asked the EA leader.

"They are adjusting comfortably; they have converted one of the assembly lines to construct the Strike Liberty. The training of the pilots is also going well according to the science team," Sai said.

"From what I have seen, it is an impressive mobile suit. I have to congratulate you on being able to get the info on the Strike Freedom for the design of the Strike Liberty Yavin," applauded Natasha. The woman had long dark hair and was in her forties; though one could not tell since she was quite beautiful.

"Unlike my father and brother, I have far better contacts inside Athha's camp so getting a hold of the Strike Freedoms specs was not that difficult. Though what we have was done by actual scans of the Gundam," informed the Nobleman.

"It was still impressive; are you having any problems from your tomboy princess?" asked Fllay with a smirk.

"She has no illusions about me and I believe that she sees me as a potential threat. However, we are getting along since she needs me in order to run the country," stated Yavin.

"Will she be a hindrance when we initiate the final phase of the plan?" asked Nichos.

"Depends on the state of world events; I cannot give a definite answer right now," the young man answered.

"Well I am happy to report that everything is going very well on my end," Fllay stated with a smile.

"Have the Equatorial Union eating out of your hand?" teased Sai.

"Just about; I believe that they will be ready by the time the plan becomes in motion," stated the red-head.

"Well that is good; what about the Republic of East Asia?" asked Natasha.

"My influence in their military is growing as well as their sympathy for the Alliance. The only problem is the political leadership at the moment," informed Fllay.

"If Durandal moves forward with his Destiny Plan, then we might now have to worry about that," said Nichos.

"He still hasn't told the Council about it," stated Evelyn Canaver, the newest member of the organization. She was the younger sister of former PLANT Councilwoman Eileen Canaver and had taken her sister's spot on the Council.

"Oh? Not even a subtle mention?" asked Sai.

"No, at least not to the whole Council; there are a few members who are quite loyal to him so there is the chance that they know about it," informed the Councilwoman.

"Has Gilbert tried to win your support yet?" asked Nichos.

"No; neither has Yzak Joule's little faction as well. Neither one of them are not yet sure what to make of me since I am still new," said the young woman. Her green eyes and brown hair made the woman look exotic, which a few men found attractive.

"Well do your best to stay neutral for now; you are our hope for our plans for the PLANTs," stated Obali.

"I am doing my best; I might be able to win support as long as the PLANT population believes that they will be treated as equals in our new Federation. I have a question though; why did you kidnap Meer Campbell?" asked Evelyn, looking straight at Nichos. The other leaders looked at him in surprise as well.

"Her loss would be a major blow to Durandal, which has benefited for far too long with his fake Lacus," said the EA leader with a frown.

"Is she still alive? While she is probably a willing pawn of the man, I don't believe she deserves to die," said the Councilwoman.

"I would not go to all that trouble to grab the woman if I wanted her dead. She is quite safe here in the Heavens Base," assured the Director.

"Already bedding her?" asked Fllay with a smirk.

"No actually; I found out some unfortunate things about the girl which might be the reason why Durandal has such an influence over her," sated Nichos.

"And that is?" asked Yavin.

"She is one of my kind," informed the Director with a scowl.

There was silence in the room as the members all mentally took in what the statement meant. They all knew what Nichos was as well as the PLANTs dirty little secret.

"How bad is she?" asked a concerned Natasha.

"Not too bad all things considered; her genetic structure is in a lot better condition than most of my kind. Durandal though had Meer addicted to some medication that were no longer necessary so that he could control the young woman," informed Nichos, now angry. His rage was shared by the rest of the members.

"That man needs to go when we go through with our plans," said Yavin with conviction.

"Agreed," said Evelyn, not sure how she was going to keep her face straight when the next Council meeting took place.

"All in time my friends; may we continue this next week?" asked Nichos. There were nods all around and everyone said their goodbyes. Once the final screen went black, Nichos stood up and stretched as the lights came back on.

Instead of leaving the room through the front door, he went to a hidden door located in the back of the office. Opening it, he continued down a long hallway until he reached another door that led to a private room. Walking inside, he closed the door behind him and headed to the queen sized bed at the back of the room.

Both Yu Fan and Yu Lan were standing by the side of the bed, trying to comfort the young woman who was lying down and in pain. Nodding that they could leave, the bodyguards left to get some rest.

Taking a seat on the bed, he put his hand gently on the young woman to comfort her. She was shaking all over and her voice cracked as she spoke.

"It hurts so much," said Meer, tears in her eyes.

"I know my dear; just a little bit longer and you will be free from that leash Durandal had you on," said Nichos as smoothly as possible.

"Promise?" asked Meer, her voice barely a whisper.

"I promise; I won't leave your side until it happens," stated the young man with conviction.

As he held her close, Nichos did his best to hide his anger at the injustice of the situation. He swore that he would make Durandal pay for his crimes as well as the ones who killed his father.

Justice would be served, one way or another.

Author's Note: This chapter was supposed to have been released a couple of weeks ago. However, due to a computer error, stupid Window's updates, the chapter was deleted and I hade to rewrite it.

Hopefully you enjoyed this update and hope it had shed some light on our new faction. This update also marks the start of the Meer/OC pairing.

Next update will be in September and will feature several battles between the EA and ZAFT. It will be a type if intermission chapter for the next one.

Please R&R!


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Gundam Seed Destiny**

War was coming to New Zealand.

During the chaotic Reconstruction Wars, the island nation had been abandoned by its population because of widespread destruction at the time; fleeing to the Australian mainland. When the Oceana Union had been formed, the islands had been repopulated and its infrastructure rebuilt. It was now the source of forty-five percent of the Union's agriculture.

When the first war between the PLANTs and the Earth Alliance broke out, the Oceana Union had sided with ZAFT and Carpentaria had been built. At the same time, New Zealand had become one of the PLANTs major ocean bases. After the Junius Seven treaty, the base had been expanded to encompass all non-agricultural areas of the isle. This included shipyards, submarine pens, storage areas, factories, and other military buildings.

It was a massive artificial citadel to say the least. Railways and underground tunnels connected the military parts of New Zealand making it one massive military base than a group of tiny ones. Beam turrets as well as anti-air were located as every beach front area. It had originally sported a tiny garrison but as the second war grew more intense, more troops had been stationed on the isles as well as recruitment from the local civilian population. While these volunteers were not as battle hardened as the regular ZAFT soldiers, they added a good number to the defenses of New Zealand Base.

It had always made a juicy target for the EA and that day had finally arrived.

Operator Tessa Falcon had detected the Earth Alliance fleet from her station inside the main Command Center of New Zealand Base. Located inside Mount Raupehu which sat on the Northern Island, it provided all command and control operations of the entire isle base. It was considered the most secure place in all of New Zealand. At least that's what the green uniformed woman hoped.

ZAFT had known about the EA fleet for some time now; it was hard to miss the large number of ships massing in Hawaii. What ZAFT did not know was the armada's destination since EA security had increased greatly since the war resumed. When the mass of ships began moving southward, it was suggested that the EA was moving against Orb; that assumption was wrong once the EA fleet skirted around the island nation and continued southward.

"Sir; enemy fleet has entered New Zealand waters to the northwest," informed the young woman to the ZAFT commander that stood a bit behind her.

"Condition Red; all people to their assigned stations!" announced Commander Lancewood over the intercom as he looked at the tactical map.

All around New Zealand, the alert siren could be heard and all ZAFT personnel hurried to their assigned positions. The various defenses of the isle came online and mobile suits headed to their runways. The local civilian population was ushered to shelters below in order to move them out of harms way.

"How many active vosgulovs do we have right now?" asked Lancewood as he counted the number of EA ships out there. Currently the enemy had over sixty surface vessels and it was still unknown how many attack submarines as well as Forbiddens that were out there as well.

"Ten sir; all under the authority of Commander Halas," informed the operator.

"Tell him that I want all of his vessels to stay close to the base and to try and disperse without spreading too thin. Have all of our Ashs and Goohns cover the vosgulovs the best they can. If we can concentrate our fire power, then we just might hold off until reinforcements arrive."

"Shouldn't we send out our forces to attack sir? Put the enemy off-balance?" asked another operator from his station.

The Command Center was small despite being the center of operations of New Zealand Base. Currently it was fully staffed and nearly at its maximum capacity of thirty personnel. Space was limited due the sheer number of consoles and monitors in the room. It made things cramped; especially given the situation.

"If I had an abundant of forces under my command; but since we don't know what the enemy has out there, I don't want to risk it," answered Commander Lancewood with a frown as he watched the EA move closer.

"We have the local militias," stated another female operator.

"Who are moderately trained and using antique GINNs; send them up against Windams and all you will have is cannon fodder," the ZAFT Commander said sarcastically.

Though the militias added to his total forces, all they would be good for was rear guard duty and a possible last line of defense. Lancewood hoped it would not come to that though; New Zealand had a solid defense line and the EA was going to be chewed up by it when relief forces arrived from Sydney and Carpentaria.

…...

"Admiral; all ships are ready to fire on your order," informed Ensign Jakes from the communications console.

Admiral William Roosevelt nodded and studied the ZAFT defense line on the tactical map located in the center of the CIC. His flagship the AFN Nimitz, which was a refitted _Spengler-class vessel, _was located in the center of the fleet. If he had his way, the Nimitz would be at the head of the armada; but Fleet Command had been explicit in their orders.

The Admiral was sixty and rather short. He was bald, had blue eyes, and had a good number of wrinkles due to his years in the service. Dressed in a crisp white EA uniform, he was a very accomplished officer due to his successful defensive engagements in the last war; he was responsible for keeping Hawaii out of ZAFT hands during the initial confusion of the N-Jammers being deployed.

"Quite a lot of firepower arrayed against us," commented Marine General Theodore Grant from Roosevelt's right. The Admiral nodded in agreement and pointed to the three closest beaches.

"Think those will be mined?" asked the EA Admiral to his old friend. The General was in command of the landing forces which consisted of over 20,000 marines and three hundred armored vehicles as well as mobile suits.

"I would have mined them if I were in charge of this base," stated Grant. Standing at six feet, the fifty year old marine was dressed in combat fatigues since he planned to go ashore with the second wave. A combat veteran with infantry experience, Grant had grayish- brown hair and hazel eyes.

"We'll try and shoot a few missiles at the beaches so we can detonate any mines that ZAFT may have there. This will let the enemy know that you are coming though," said the EA Admiral.

"Even an idiot would know that we are coming anyways; better those mines be taken out this way instead of the hard way," Grant said with a smirk. Roosevelt nodded and gave a new order.

"All ships open fire!"

At that command, forty-five of the sixty vessel force opened up with a massive barrage. Cannons and missiles erupted from the various carriers, cruisers, and destroyers that made up the fleet. The rest of the armada was cargo ships containing hovercraft to shuttle the ground troops and vehicles to the shore once it was safe to do so. They were well protected by staying in the back and covered by thirty Forbiddens that lay below the surface of the water.

Several hundred missiles roared towards New Zealand, targeting the various beam turret towers and anti-air defenses that lined the shore line. Anti-missile fire from hidden positions glazed the sky above the isle with flak in an attempt to prevent destruction of the defensive line. Almost half the missiles were taken out but with the sheer amount of them, many found their targets and many of the shore defenses were hit. ZAFT then counterattacked with their own missile batteries which targeted the EA fleet with vengeance.

The Earth Alliance fleet countered with their own anti-missile fire though a few rockets made their way thru the screen and three cruisers were hit. Two were damaged badly but still afloat while the third was still combat capable. More enemy missile fire came from the isle as well as blast from beam cannons.

"Any indication that the enemy has launched his mobile suits yet?" asked Roosevelt.

"Nothing in the air yet sir; it seems the enemy is keeping his mobile suits close to the base," stated the ops officer.

"Seems that this ZAFT Commander is smart; he knows that he can't fight us in a one on one fight so he keeps in forces back under cover of the base. Plus he is obviously waiting for reinforcements from Australia," observed Grant.

"Agreed; it means we'll have to go to him; launch all mobile suits!" ordered the Admiral.

Major Samantha Himas heard the order come thru and prepared for battle. Equipped with a jet striker pack, she moved her Windam onto the carrier's tarmac and waited for the signal to launch. The order soon came and the Windam boosted into the sky towards its destination.

Himas wasn't alone and dozens of Windams launched from the ten carriers that made up the fleet. As second in command of 67th armored regiment, she made her way along side her commanding officer Colonel Caladari. Soon the regiment organized itself around the two officers.

There were two-hundred and fifty mobile suits total in the fleet; split up into five regiments. All were Windams and veterans from not only the outbreak of the second war, but from the first as well. The Major herself had been a Strike Dagger pilot and had been at Victoria; successfully taking down four enemy GINNs.

Enemy fire came from the ZAFT held isle and all mobile suits dodged, firing in return. Beam fire lined the beaches, cooking the sand and causing as much damage as possible on the enemy defenses. As the Windams moved closer, the sky was bombarded with flak fire, taking out a few mobile suits. The EA regiments then split up, each heading towards an assigned beach.

Himas used her beam rifle to take out a flak cannon before it could fire another load. Her comrades did the same and soon a good number of the enemy anti-air was destroyed. She was about to land her Windam onto the beach when she suddenly detected contacts coming from the deep inside New Zealand Base coming her way.

The sight of ZAFT mobile suits caused Himas to refocus her attention away from the enemy static defense line. The force of a hundred and twenty ZAFT suits was made up of Zakus and Goufs came at the Windams from the air. A second wave of contacts was detected coming from hidden bunkers at the beach's edge; this force was made up of Gazuoots and older Bucues.

"Major; you take half the regiment and take deal the mobile suits in the air; I'll take the other half to handle the ground forces," said Colonel Caladari.

"Yes sir," the Major said and carried out her orders. She pulled out her beam saber and flew at the enemy with her comrades closely following from behind.

…

"Admiral; ZAFT has launched their mobile suit forces and are engaging our Windams at the beaches," announced one of the CIC's operators.

"How many?" asked Roosevelt, turning his head towards her.

"One-hundred and twenty Goufs and Zakus as well as unknown number of ground suits," answered the young woman.

"A little over half their mobile suit strength," stated Grant.

"Which means that they are keeping their older models at the rear," the Admiral said. Grant nodded in agreement.

"According to Intel, they have all been assigned to the militia force that is primarily civilian," informed the Intelligence Officer.

"Very well; contact Command and let them know that they can launch the second wave," ordered Roosevelt.

…...

It was well known that ZAFT used drop pods in just about all their attacks; after all it was their preferred tactic in the first war.

The Earth Alliance Military had long detested this method of attack since it was something that could be launched at any given time. With the space above Earth being so highly contested, it was hard to get fair warning of ZAFT drop pods coming from above. The same could be said of ZAFT since they themselves lacked any real early warning system as well.

Above the Earth and over Oceana, five experimental aircraft skimmed along the atmosphere and traveled at sonic speeds. The _Ulysses_-class transcontinental jet had been initially designed to deliver supplies to Earth Alliance Bases quickly. However, with the onset of the renewed war between the EA and the PLANTs, a new task had been assigned for it.

Attached to each Ulysses were five drop pods; all containing more than just cargo. As soon as they were over their target, the aircraft dropped their deadly load. They dropped towards the Earth like meteorites, catching New Zealand Base by complete surprise.

…..

"Sir! Large number of drop pods coming in hot," screamed Operator Falcon, completely confused by the new arrivals.

"Reinforcements?" asked Commander Lancewood who was equally baffled.

"No sir," answered the young woman.

The ZAFT Commander looked on one of the monitors which showed the pods coming in. As they came closer they broke up and revealed mobile suits. Lancewood was soon horrified to see that they were EA suits and not ZAFT; Slaughter Daggers to be exact.

"Those Alliance bastards, they are deploying right on top of us; send out Goufs and Zakus to intercept them immediately," ordered the Commander. As far as he could tell, the Daggers landing points would be all over the interior of the base where defenses were very light.

"There are none to spare sir; they are all at the defense line dealing with the enemy's Windams," stated another operator.

Lancewood scowled and stared at the tactical map. What the operator said was very true; all of his main forces were indeed occupied. There was no time what so ever to recall enough Zakus and Goufs to deal with the new threat coming from above. There was only one force that could be used and it was at best, marginal.

"Send out all militia and lock down all critical areas of the base; the enemy will probably go for our power stations. They must be guarded above all else," ordered the man.

…..

While the drop pods did contain Slaughter Daggers, they also contained another surprise; special forces infantry.

Sixty Atlantic Federation Navy Seals were crunched together in hollow tubes that looked like missile barreling towards the Earth. Armed to the teeth with a variety of weapons and equipment, they mentally prepared for the coming battle on the ground. There was also hope that the insulation of the insertion tubes would hold out so that they would not be killed in impact.

Captain Roger Christo checked his weapon for the sixth time as he fought the urge to puke because of the crushing force of the drop. The rest of his men were doing the same; checking their shotguns and sub-machine guns. They were all dressed in a new type of special light armor that was barely felt and was could supposedly stop a shotgun blast; if the rumors were true that is.

There were eighty total men assigned to the operation; split off into five different teams. Each team had been assigned a specific priority target depending on their drop site with a few secondary ones as well. If each main priority could be accomplished, then New Zealand Base would be gutted from within.

"Impact in fifteen!" screamed one of the seals whom manned the pods only console.

"Everyone brace for impact!" ordered the Captain as he prepared himself for the coming force of hitting the ground.

Each soldier in the pod was strapped tightly to the insulated wall; no one wanted to be on the floor when the pod hit the Earth. The only thing not strapped was everyone's right arm so that it would be used to get out of the restraints once the pod was stable on the ground. The only light in the dark was a single console which was the only window to the outside world.

"Remember your orders; no one is to go off alone. If you do find yourself separated from the team, find a safe location to hunker down and do as much damage to the enemy as possible," yelled Christo one last time. He received screamed replies from his men.

The impact of the pods hitting the earth sent dirt and trees flying in all directions. The small quakes that occurred would have been felt to all those who dwelled in the island since they all landed at different locations. After a minute after impact, the side hatches on the pods opened up, Special Forces coming out likes ants.

…...

Militia volunteer Mathias Okins nervously moved his GINN out of the hanger towards the exit of the bunker.

When he joined the Militia just before the second war broke out, he never actually expected to fight. He was a farmer and joining up at the time was his way of impressing girls. New Zealand was a fortress and the last place that the Earth Alliance was expected to attack.

Mathias was also a mediocre pilot at best; only having about ten hours total of flight time. He was a good shot and could fly, thanks to his love of video games, but was never good at dodging enemy fire in the live battle exercises. More often then not, he was "killed" by the first enemy shot.

"Echo three; you are cleared for take off. Once you are out, head to your assigned position," ordered the ZAFT soldier over the radio.

"Understood," Mathias said as he griped the controls and waited for the green light.

When the green light flashed, he activated the thrusters and flew down the long dark tunnel to the light of the exit. Once clear, he saw signs of the battle rage all around him, but still a good distance out. Breathing a small sign of relief, he headed towards his required destination.

He, and his team of fifteen, was required to defend a large power station located deep within the center the isle. He had seen the thing dozens of times, passing it in his vehicle on the way to the fields. The station was located in a clearing surrounded by forest. It was lightly defended with only two beam turrets and very weak armor.

He was the last to arrive, and joined his comrades in taking refuge in the trees, surrounding the power station in a circle. Each GINN was armed beam rifle, the only thing new for the mobile suit, and a heavy sword for close combat. Mathias hoped that he would not have to use the sword since it meant getting close to the enemy.

"Listen up," said Commander Hayes, a female for ZAFT pilot now a Militia member "We received word that the EA has dropped a number of mobile suits behind our lines. Command believes that their job is to cripple our defenses and make it easier for their ground forces to role right in. This power station must not fall. Stick together and work as a team; that will help you survive," ordered the older woman.

Before he could give an acknowledgement of the order, his sensors detected seven contacts closing in on their location. Knowing that no other reinforcements were coming, everyone knew that the enemy had come. Readying his rifle, Mathias hid behind a tree with four others.

When the Slaughter Daggers appeared in the sky, all fifteen GINNs opened fire.

…

Admiral Roosevelt watched as the ground forces began to push the ZAFT defenders back. While the beachhead wasn't quite established yet, it was apparent that the ZAFT defenses were beginning to fold. The missile attacks and beam fire were no striking the fleet, instead focusing solely on the ground forces themselves.

"Shall we launch the third wave?" asked his CAG, looking from the tactical map.

"Not just yet; I want our Special Forces to do their work first. I want the enemy costal defenses completely neutralized before we commit everything we have," said the Fleet Admiral as he studied the display.

"Sir; we just been informed by our observation drones that the Minerva and Diana have launched from Carpentaria," informed a female ensign from her station.

"Just as we planned; inform the 83rd Squadron that their target is inbound. Also inform the Seraphim that the Minerva is heading their way," ordered Roosevelt.

"Aye Sir"

…..

"I knew we should have launched early," Athrun said to Gladys. The Minerva Captain was seated at her chair while Athrun stood beside her.

"It was believed that the fleet was heading either to Carpentaria or Orb," the female Captain said grimly.

"The EA would never attack Orb now and create another front; also Carpentaria is too deep in our territory. We should have been better prepared," growled the young FAITH Commander.

Dressed in his flight suit, Athrun was prepared to go out with the rest of the Minerva's mobile suits once New Zealand was in range. While he would not be piloting a Gundam, his Gouf was more than customized to make it unique. While he was supposed to stay aboard the Minerva, ZAFT needed all the fighting strength it needed for the coming battle.

"Why split the assistance force up? Would it not have been better to keep the Minerva and Diana together?" asked Arthur Trine from his station.

"We don't know what surprises the Alliance has yet to show. They had to have prepared for eventual ZAFT support to show up and I do not want to keep all of our forces in one area. That's why I had the Minerva, Diana, and our subs take different paths," explained Athrun, looking at the man.

Arthur nodded and Athrun turned his head back to the main display. The screen was currently connected to New Zealand's main defense network; showing everything that was going on around the isle. It did not look good for the ZAFT defenders as the enemy appeared to have deployed a large force behind the lines which was causing some damage.

So far, the enemy force was concentrating on the facilities that provided power to the static defenses. Already a small number of them had been taken out and the consequences could be seen quite clearly as the EA established two beachheads on the isle. As predicted, the civilian militia was proving fruitless, being swept away easily.

They were running out of time.

…

Captain Samantha Badgiruel patiently sat in her command chair with her eyes closed.

It was the waiting that she hated; that and the fact that she had not drunk a single drop of alcohol in three days. Samantha needed to be sober for this coming battle and not be distracted. Thus she was using a meditation technique that a friend had taught her in the academy. It worked well in situations like this.

"Captain; Minerva detected on scanners. They are about ten miles ahead and closing," informed her sensor officer.

"Have they detected us yet?" asked the woman, her eyes still closed.

"Not that we could see; our stealth systems are keeping us hidden," replied the young man.

"Good; have Sven's team prepare for combat and ready our long range weapon for attack," ordered the Alliance officer.

"Aye aye Ma'am," the bridge crew said, carrying out her orders.

…

Mathias screamed in fear as his flight leader's mobile suit exploded off to his right.

The advanced Slaughter Daggers were proving their superiority even thought they were outnumbered five to one. Even though beam fire littered the sky, the Daggers dodged easily and fired back; taking out three of the defenders on their first shots. Mathias could not believe that Alliance mobile suits were winning with such a low number.

Of course he realized that they were fighting veterans, not armatures like themselves. Other than the Commander, who was now dead, none in the unit had actually seen combat. Instead of a professional combat they were an angry mob fighting off real soldiers. It was not all bad as one of the Daggers had been slightly his and was on the ground where the GINNs were attempting to swarm it.

"Form up on me!" yelled one of the GINN pilots over the intercom. Mathias was about to comply and head over until the grounded Dagger shoved his beam sword thru the GINNs cockpit. Mathias watched it explode to pieces.

The young Militia volunteer was about to find some cover when he was hit in the leg by beam fire. His GINN fell over onto its side and another blast took its head off. Blind, the pilot had no clear idea what was going on outside. Realizing that his fight was over, Mathias undid his straps and opened the cockpit.

Outside was clear hell. Burning wreckage lay all about the area. The remaining GINNs were running for their lives, but were cut off by more Daggers arriving. Jumping out of the mobile suit with his survival bag on his shoulder, Mathias ran for the trees. He then watched as the enemy fired on the power station. It did not take long for it to go up in flames.

When the facility was scrap, the Daggers took off and left Mathias to watch the flames.

…

The entire bridge shook, nearly causing everyone to fall over.

"What was that?" demanded Captain Gladys, turning her head to the sensor station. Another impact shook the vessel.

"We're under attack, but I can't tell where," was the reply she got.

Sensors did indeed show nothing. Whatever was hitting them, it was coming from somewhere. The Minerva was hit again a minute later, rattling the ship even more. Again, the sensors showed nothing.

"I think I got it," said Meyrin from her station; even though she was the communications officer, she did other duties as well.

"What is it?" asked Trine from his station.

"Some sort of projectile, coming from in front of us," informed the young woman.

"Has to be the Seraphim; intelligence did say that they used some sort of new long-ranged weapon. We have to launch all mobile suits since it is obvious that they are in range of intercept," stated Athrun on screen. He had headed to his Gouf a few minutes ago.

"I agree; launch all suits and prepare for battle!" ordered the ZAFT Captain. One by one, the Minerva's compliment of Gundams, Zakus, and Goufs headed out for the coming battle.

"Captain, the Diana reports that it is under attack by the Alliance's new fighter craft. Also, our vosgulovs are under attack by enemy attack subs," informed Meyrin frantically.

"They're trying to stop us from helping New Zealand Base; order both forces that they have to reach the base and to avoid direct combat if they can," ordered Athrun from the screen.

"Yes Commander," said Meyrin, giving the order out over the communication's line.

"We have the Seraphim on scanners; they have launched mobile suits and aircraft," informed Trine from his station.

…

Nova watched as the Minerva and her mobile suits approached; smiling as they came closer.

She had waited for this for a long time and finally her chance for revenge was upon her at last. Nova focused her anger and prepared it to drive her to take out Shinn Asuka. As agreed, Sven would let her handle the Destiny alone and do his best to keep their coming engagement isolated. She had come to trust Sven and knew he would do the best he could.

Stellar would be avenged; no matter what.

**Author's Note: Been a long time huh?**

**I apologize for that; a series of complications have rattled my life, including writers block. This update would have been longer, but I wanted to get it out. I am happy to report that the next chapter of this is 1/3 of the way done and should be out by mid next month.**

**The idea of New Zealand Base came from watching UC Gundam and Zeon's California Base. I thought it would be cool to do something like that but be believable as well. Since the Oceana Union is essentially ZAFT territory, I thought New Zealand would be the perfect place. Even today, New Zealand is basically an agrarian nation and from what I understand, provides a good amount of food to the region. Since the PLANTs lack a strong agricultural base, I figured New Zealand would be very well prized by the stellar nation.**

**The next update will be mostly about the battle between the Minerva and Seraphim. It will be the same length as this one, if not longer; I am going for epic here. Until next time and apologize for anything I have missed, need a pre-reader.**

**Please R&R!**


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